Crater Lake, Oregon
July 30-31, 2017
The campground at Crater Lake was full, but we were able to reserve a spot at the Farewell Bend campground, just a half an hour away (see Rogue River). We spent most of Sunday and Monday in the Crater Lake national park.
It was a beautiful day on Sunday, hot and sunny. The crowds around the lodge kept us away, but we went for a couple of hikes with Bailey, had a picnic in a rest area, stopped at Vidae Falls, and drove around the east side of the lake.
The next day, smoke was encroaching from nearby wildfires, but it was still hot and sunny. We drove the whole perimeter of the lake, starting from the west this time, and stopping for another picnic along the way. We ended up at the lodge in the late afternoon and stopped for a drink on the patio. That's when we ran into friends from Salem, and had a wonderful time catching up the last few years, listening to a ranger's nature talk, and playing in snow in the parking lot (when it was 85 degrees!).
September 24, 2008
When we crossed over the border into Oregon, we were as weary as we'd ever been, but we could resist one more national park to add to our list (making it seven). Crater Lake was just an hour or so out of the way, and if we hurried, we could make it there before dark.
We made it, but it was so bitter cold that we didn't feel much like lingering. We walked a little around the rim and checked out the lodge, which is a beautiful, stately place.
Then it was back on the road for us, in time for a gorgeous sunset. Perfect way to end the trip.
