Down by the River: Crater Lake

We woke up just south of Crater Lake National Park in the associated National Forest. It was a little tough to get out of the forest, there were a few obstacles.

Although the van had no problems with them :)

Eventually we made our way to Crater Lake. To be honest, I did not know anything about Crater Lake before arriving. I didn't even know what the origin of the crater was - was it a meteorite?? As it turns out, the crater was formed by a volcano. It also turns out that Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States.

We drove uphill for some time. We kept driving up the mountain, through the trees, past some streams and canyons, and eventually far enough up ... that we saw SNOW. I was amazed.

I mean, this is July here - and we're in the northern hemisphere - and there's SNOW! Whoa!! Joey laughed. I threw a snowball at him.

So apparently, according to Joey, the only way to experience nature is to really become enveloped. I was happy throwing snow.

Crater Lake is remarkably clear, the surveyors regularly can see down to depths over 100 feet. The lake has no outlet, and is filled by rain water and snowmelt. I would say mainly snowmelt. There are algae that grow remarkably deep in the lake since it is so clear, and there are even volcanic vents at the bottom where other plants live.

Joey decided that he was going to swim in Crater Lake. This way, he would truly experience it. I thought he was nuts.

We hiked down the steep trail to the edge of the lake. That was fun. Joey remembered hiking down the trail the first time he came to Crater Lake - on top of his dad's shoulders. He says he doesn't remember the trail much, but does remember playing with his dad's hair.

Eventually we made it to the 'beach' - more like rocky outcropping. There were a few other mad folks who had jumped in the lake. I saw one guy treading water for a couple of minutes. Joey surveyed the area and found the perfect spot. Not too much pollen. (There was a lot of pollen floating around the lake.)

Joey bravely inched toward the water in his swim trunks, put on his goggles, and stepped out into the water. At some point he slipped off of a rock and fell in. No problem. He took several strokes out towards the center of the lake.