Crater Lake - Again

I forgot to provide a link to the National Park page for Crater Lake. So this provides me another opportunity to show you a few more photos from the Lake that I took last August. On one flank of the rim there is a museum with fascinating interpretive displays showing the geological history of the area and the crater; histories of the indigenous Indians living near the former mountain; lists of flora and fauna; interesting facts about the lake water; and scientific research done nearby and in the lake itself. There are still thermal vents in the depths of the lake. This photo is taken of the beach directly below the museum. The blue is even more intense than this photo suggests.

The Pacific Northwest manages to stage some spectacular volcanic action. Do you remember (or recall reading about) the devastation caused by the eruption of Mount St. Helens in 1980? Mount Mazama from which Crater Lake came to be was 42 times as powerful as the eruption on Mount St. Helens. Apparently lava flowed in a 25-mile sweep around the area, and ash drifted perhaps as far south as upper Nevada and as north as Canada.

On the right is one of the many ravens that fly and drift over the lake - a very rakish and fearless fellow he was.

Winters here are very long. According to statistics kept by the park, the Crater Lake area averages 533 inches of snow annually - some of the heaviest snowfall in the US. And that explains the feet-high drifts of snow in June!

Despite its dramatic past (and hopefully quiet future), Crater Lake is a magnificent quiet place that has a way of seeping into my bones. I always feel like I've been away for ages after returning from this magical place.