It seems like we flew down the coast until we stopped in Lakeside, which is where I left off in my last post. In case you missed all of the coastal action in Oregon, you can read about it here. We left the campground early in the morning so we could get some hiking done around Crater Lake.
We had reserved a spot in Crater Lake RV Park, and it was 30 minutes southwest of the National Park on Hwy 62. Once we unhooked the RV we had plenty of time to get there and explore. The north entrance and West Rim Drive were both closed due to wildfires.
We stopped at the park headquarters for a map and started working our way east, since it was the only way to drive. As we got higher up the road we could see smoke billowing from the other side of the nearest mountain.
There were multiple turnouts to stop and take pictures. The sky was blue and the water appeared so calm and serene. I was really surprised that we didn’t see a lot of people. Most viewpoints only had a car or two when we pulled up. The busy summer season was definitely over.
Reading about this natural phenomenon was so intriguing. It was once a volcano that erupted and then caved in. After it collapsed, the hollow cone filled with rain water and melted snow. The average annual snowfall is 43 feet.
The strange formations around the volcano resulted from the hardened lava. I would think that a volcanic eruption would be a horribly ugly event, but the scars that remain are spectacular.
We drove about seven miles outside the crater to see some pinnacles. Down below the pointed lava tubes was a small creek and you could hear the trickling water from the trail above.
If you prefer not to drive yourself, the trolley goes on tour several times a day. We only saw it once at a lookout and waited for everyone to load up and leave. Then we took our time to observe and snap photos.
After a couple of hours, we noticed smoke coming from the north side of the crater. We learned that the entire area has encountered wildfires for the past six weeks and there have been numerous evacuations. That can make you a little nervous to fall asleep at night!
It didn’t take long and the smoke started to blanket the lake. We felt lucky that we arrived at the park as early as we did and had decent views for most of the day.
The next morning we got out and did some sightseeing around the community of Prospect. Our campground host gave us a map that listed several really cool hidden gems.
Some of these places took a little more hiking than others, but all the exercise was worth it. Most of the time, we had the trails to ourselves.
The Rogue River was running through a deep gorge for miles and the smaller rivers feeding down to it created beautiful waterfalls. The road crossed over the river several times and the bridges were a little intimidating. Darin didn’t like the really narrow ones while he was towing.
These trails had no guard rails and you could look straight down over the edge. There was evidence that some people were really bold and stepped out onto the rock outcroppings like the one in the picture below. Yikes!
There is so much beauty around Crater Lake that it deserves an extra day or two if you plan to visit. All in all, we had a magnificent time despite the smoke.