Crater Lake

Crater Lake National Park   Crater Lake 2  

CRATER LAKE

IT is hard to believe that volcanoes have been highly active in this country, and that great sections of large mountains have either blown away in violent eruptions or sunk back into the earth in fairly recent times. Yet 10,000 feet of the top of former Mount Manama, in what is now southwestern Oregon, disappeared not over 7000 years ago. This giant catastrophe seemingly took place after the Indians had come to live in the area, for they carefully kept away from the remnants of the mountain forever afterward, since ancient tradi- tions claimed it to be the battleground of the Great Spirits.

Geologists maintain that a mighty 12,000-foot cone had been built up by a series of eruptions at a point along the Cascade Range at the edge of a great lava plateau that extended into parts of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and California. In one violent outburst, some 10 cubic miles of pumice were hurled out and scattered over many square miles. Then great cracks formed in the flanks of the mountain and in the neighboring earth, and the whole top collapsed and was drawn back into spaces within emptied by the eruption.

What was left was an enormous hole in the earth about 6 miles in diameter, with cliffs which in some places now rise as much as 2000 feet above a lake of unforgettable blue water. Lava seems to have welled up in the throat of the volcano and formed the floor of this gigantic crater. At a few points, vents encouraged small cones to form, and their tips rise above the 2000 feet of water that now partially fills this immense depression, and forms particularly beautiful Crater Lake.

Since the Indians so greatly feared the area, they seem to have given the early settlers no word of this startling body of water. It was first discovered by white men in 1853, when a party of prospectors chanced upon it. During the next 30 years, it had very few visitors. Then, in 1885, it was seen by William Gladstone Steel Struck by its beauty, he conceived the idea of having this great natural wonder preserved as a national park. During the next 17 years he gave large amounts of his time and energy to this purpose, and some 250 square miles were finally set aside and established as Crater Lake National Park in May 1902, Steel gave the remaining 32 years of his life to its development, serving as its second superintendent, and then as park commissioner.

The lake is, of course, the dominant feature within the preserve. Its earliest discoverers named it Deep Blue Lake, while a later group decided it should be called Lake Majesty. Certainly it is majestic as viewed from any point along the 20-mile rim that surrounds it. These massive ramparts of pearly gray, splashed at some points with vivid colors, rise sharply from the waters. They are striped and mottled, too, with patches of the dark green of evergreen trees. But it is the inky blue surface 20 square miles of it, and spread wide before the eyes that commands attention. Every drop of it, so far as can be learned, is from rain or snowfall, which in the area averages 72 inches of water annually. About 50 feet of snow sifts down in a normal winter.

This body of water has no inlet and no outlet, at least none except what may seep away through sides and bottom. Yet the surface elevation does not vary more than two or three feet throughout the year, evidence that intake, seepage, and evaporation are closely in balance. The water is crystal clear and very deep. For some reason it absorbs the other colors but reflects all of the blues in sunlight. Thus it is very deep in hue, and very placid and serene, because of its high protecting walls.

Crater Lake is about 250 miles south of Portland and 440 north of San Francisco. Closest city to the park is Klamath Falls, about 46 miles from South Entrance, and a few miles f arthet from East Entrance. The West Entrance is 69 miles from Medford, on important U.S. 99, and the North Entrance connects with another north-south highway, U.S. 97. Air, rail, and bus lines reach Medford and Klamath Falls, from which there are stage connections to the park daily from mid-June to mid-September, During that three-month period, there are lodge, cabin, and camping facilities at Rim Village, which is at 7100 feet elevation and 950 feet above the lake. There are also picnic and campgrounds there, and a switchback trail down the canyon wall to the boat landing. Three other public campgrounds will be found along entrance roads, at Lost Creek, Cold Springs, and Annie Spring, Roads through entrances to the West and South are kept open throughout the year. Those from North and East entrances, together with Rim Drive, are closed in late September and reopened about July 1, dependent somewhat upon snow conditions. Since snow is so abundant, skiing is particularly good, and many come to enjoy it. Two trails from park headquarters to Rim Village are maintained throughout the winter. While there are warming-room facilities at Rim Village, no overnight accommodations can be had in the park during the colder months. This is a winter wonderland indeed, for the snowy splendor at Crater is truly magnificent. The deep blue lake is still very much in evidence, to be contrasted with the white of the snow, for its waters never freeze.