Crater Lake, at 1949 feet deep at its deepest point, is the deepest lake in the United States, renowned for its exceptional clarity and intense blue color. However, we only saw "the deep blue" for 3 to 4 hours out of the 4 days we were there in Southern Oregon...
So, I would say that our Crater Lake trip was a total bust.
With the air quality index in the 180's from all the nearby wild fires, we could barely make out the famed Wizard Island from all the haze, let alone see across the lake. We still mustered through, and drove around Rim Drive Road, hoping that the views would be better at each lookout.
The next 2 days, the air quality was equally bad, with rain and snow added into the mix! At the entrance of Crater Lake, the park ranger said visibility was ZERO with the snow. So we turned the car around and explored the gorges and waterfalls nearby Crater Lake instead. That turned out to be pretty awesome.
Finally, by the fourth day, the rain and snow cleaned out the smoky air, and we had visibility, but the low clouds were drifting in and out most of the day. We had maybe about 3 hours of partial sun depending on which part of the lake we were at and whether we were above or below the clouds, so we could at least see partial glimpses of the famous blue lake. But definitely nothing like what I remembered when visiting over 20 years ago.
DAY 1 & 2: Poor Visibility of Wizard Island Due to Bad AQI
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| DAY 3: Zero Visibility due to snow. There's suppose to be a lake some where down there... |
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| DAY 4: Finally! Clear Visibility of Wizard Island and Experienced the "Deep Blue". Yay! |
I guess it's an excuse for us to go back again in the future after COVID19. With COVID19, all the visitor centers were closed. Boat tours to Wizard Island were non-operational. Even the famous Crater Lake Lodge built in 1915 was closed to all except overnight guests. Only the gift shop at Rim Village, AND amazingly the gas station at Mazama village were open with reasonable gas prices! $2.49/ gallon made this California girl happy!
Despite the bad air quality, we still had a great time and found things to do around the Crater Lake vicinity that we might not have visited had visibility been excellent around the lake. So below are our highlights. No itinerary included, as that would not be helpful to most people who would be going when things have opened back up, and the air quality is good; and would most certainly want to take boat rides to Wizard Island or go see the sunrise and sunsets at Discovery Point and Watchman Peak respectively. None of that was on our itinerary due to COVID19 and poor visibility.
We stayed at one of the super cute and cozy A-Framed cabins at Aspen Inn in Fort Klamath, which is about a 20 minute drive (17 miles) to the south entrance of Crater Lake. It's one of the closest hotels to Crater Lake short of staying inside the national park itself.
Link to the national park website is here. Be sure to check what is currently open, as Crater Lake closes early due to snow. Please also download a map of the area ahead of time, as cell service is spotty. And as always, please follow CDC guidelines for safe COVID19 practices.
Highlights of our 4 Days at Crater Lake and Vicinity
1. Do the Rim Drive and Various Pullouts
Rim Drive is a 33-mile loop around Crater Lake with more than 30 scenic pullouts, some with interpretive panels. You can't come to Crater Lake and NOT do the Rim Drive. DO IT!
It's easier to go clockwise starting from Rim Village as most of the overlooks are on the right hand side. While the park newspaper lists the 7 "must see" stops as Discovery Point, Watchman Overlook, Cloudcap Overlook, Pumice Castle Overlook, Phantom Ship Overlook, Pinnacles Overlook and Vidae Falls, I would also add in the Sinnott Memorial Overlook (lots of interpretive educational panels) right at the Rim Village parking lot as well as the Sun Notch hike for an up close good view of the phantom ship as part of the "not to be missed" list.
Honestly though, if you have time, I would just pull out at all the overlooks to take a look and see if you like the view. Most of the overlooks, you just pull up, get out of the car, and walk a few feet and the lake is right in front of you. So it doesn't take that long to take a peek. If you don't like it, drive on! Takes 3 to 5 minutes extra.
But sometimes, you'll be surprised that an overlook that was not listed as a "must see" on anyone's list, is one of your favorites! For example, the picture above is one of my favorites of the Phantom Ship with the dusting of snow on the mountains in the background-- and it was not even taken from the "must see" Phantom Ship Overlook!
Driving the entire loop, stopping at almost all the pull outs, and doing the Plakani Falls hike, Pinnacles hike, and Sun Notch trail hike took us about 6 hours (11AM-5PM).
2. Hike the Pinnacles Trail for Views of Spires
The Pinnacles Overlook is a 6-mile detour from Rim Drive, but if you are driving there anyways, you should take the time to do the 0.8 mile round trip Pinnacles trail hike to see different views of the volcanic spires protruding from the canyon walls. It's short and easy with ample rewards. We loved it, as it reminded us of the hoodoos at Bryce Canyon, albeit a bit less colorful, because these spires were formed from the hot ashes of Mount Mazama's volcanic eruption.
3. Hike the Sun Notch Trail for an Up Close View of the Phantom Ship
The Sun Notch trail is a 0.8-mile easy loop trail. You'll walk through an old forest growth before getting to the two overlooks. I'm sure seeing hazing views all day affected our reaction, but when we walked up to the overlooks at Sun Notch, we were "wowed". The Phantom Ship stood out clearly, and even sparkled a bit, despite the bad air quality. We were so excited, and might have even squealed in delight at first sight. Luckily, there were not too many witnesses at this time of the year.
4. Listen to the Roaring river at the Rogue River Gorge Viewpoint
The Rogue River Gorge Viewpoint is only a 30 min drive from Crater Lake (Annie Spring Entrance) along highway 62, so if the weather conditions are not good at the higher elevation Crater Lake, this is a good option. The pathway is all paved and so it's a leisurely stroll to all four viewpoints of the Rogue River. It was a bit hard to get good pictures from behind the safety fence high above the gorge, but it was powerful to listen to the roaring ferocious river at the narrow part of the gorge.
5. Stand at the Inlet of a Lava Tube at the Natural Bridge Viewpoint
Just a short 5 minute drive from the Rogue River Gorge Viewpoint is Natural Bridge, where the Rogue River disappears under a 200 foot long lava tube and shoots out the other end. There are 4 viewpoints along the short 0.5 mile "hike". Walk to the very last viewpoint to stand above the lava tube inlet. The interpretive panel there tells you that it takes 35 seconds for the water to travel from the inlet (where you are standing) to the outlet 200 feet down. It's way cool and a unique experience to stand above the inlet.
6. Hike to Toketee Falls Viewing Platform
7. Hike to Mill Creek, Barr Creek and Pearsony Falls and Meander Among Giant Boulders
Yes, call us crazy.... we hiked around here in the rain, complete with our rain jackets and camel packs. We saw a few other groups doing the same and they laughed and said, "Well, glad to know we were not the only crazies hiking in the rain." Well, these folks must be fellow Californians, as I heard that Oregonians are not at all phased by the rain.
At the parking lot for the Mills Creek Falls Scenic Area is a large wooden map showing where the 3 waterfalls are as well as the Avenue of the Giant Boulders. Take a picture of it to help guide you during the hike, as you will want to see all 3 falls and meander through the giant boulders. The hike was not too difficult, although we had to negotiate a few giant puddles and the rocks around the Avenue of the Giants were slippery from the rain and moss, so watch your step!