Crater Lake National Park, Oregon

June 12, 2023

Our drive through northern California and into southern Oregon was long, but scenic. The skies turned moody as we neared our destination, and we ended up setting up in the midst of a gentle thunderstorm. It had been a while since we experienced a thunderstorm (or even rain) without the accompaniment of massive amounts of wind, so we didn't really mind that much.

The drive through rural northern California was relaxing and scenic

Southern Oregon was also quite scenic

Passing through Crater Lake National Park in the rain. Still some snow on the ground here.

Our campground was adjacent to Crater Lake National Park in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, and our campsite was beautifully situated right on the Rogue River.

These pictures were taken the next morning

The Rogue River right behind our campsite

After spending a cozy rainy night reading books (no cell or internet connection here), we awakened to brilliant blue skies. We headed out to Crater Lake National Park right after breakfast.

We had seen photos of Crater Lake, but we were absolutely stunned at how gorgeous it was "in person". We discovered that even though almost all of the rim road was still closed on account of the snow, they permitted pedestrians and bicycles to go on the road as far as it was plowed. We got out the bikes and ended up being able to ride quite far (over 14 miles total!). Towards the end of the plowed section, we were the only ones on the road, and we felt like we had the whole park to ourselves.

Just after entering the main gate

Crater Lake typically gets 40-50 feet of snow per year, and it takes a while for it to melt

This was a clever way to access the bathroom when the building is buried in snow

Our first view of Crater Lake

Ropes corralled people away from the crater's edge

We were able to ride the West Rim Road further than we expected

The ground looked pretty trampled behind the sign

There were spectacular views on the side opposite the lake as well

There are lots of volcanic peaks in Oregon. Not sure which one this is.

We just couldn't get over how blue the water was

We checked out the cozy lodge as well--looks like it would be a very nice place to stay.

What a view!

By afternoon, rain clouds started arriving and we headed back to camp. Julie made a mental note to come back some other year in the late summer so we could go around the entire lake. We were surprised at how impressed we were with this national park. 

Most every day had a mixture of sun and rain--the rain happening usually in the late afternoon. When it wasn't raining, the weather was delightful, and we checked out some sites downstream along the Rogue River.

Walking along the river behind our campsite

The Rogue River Gorge, about 1/2 mile downstream (this is where the two branches of the river rejoin)

Riding our bikes to the Natural Bridge, about 3 miles downstream from camp

You can't really see from the pictures, but parts of the Rogue River actually went underground through old lava tubes and resurfaced downstream

The cave in the background is a lava tube

We had a very relaxing week and very much enjoyed our campsite where we could sit out on the deck and listen to the rushing river. We also enjoyed the varied weather of bright sunshine followed with the occasional thundershower and then sunshine again. This campsite was a hard one to say goodbye to!

After the rain (May need to turn your brightness up if the picture is too dark)

Ahhh - reading in a patch of morning sun.

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