This upcoming weekend (the weekend after Labor Day) is the grand finale of our wedding events. Since we have decorations to haul from California to Eastern Oregon, we decided we would drive the pickup. We also decided to take advantage of the three-day weekend and take the entire week off before the big event.

Rather than driving the traditional route up I-5 to Portland and then home to La Grande, we de cided to mix it up and go by way of Crater Lake. We had hoped to head out on Friday of Labor Day weekend – but we were just too busy with all the prep for Wallowa Lake. We didn’t actually get on the road until mid-day on Saturday. We loaded up the very full pickup and left the unusually warm Bay Area (averaging high 90’s last week) for the freezing (literally) cold temperatures of central Oregon. It was fun to get up past Mt. Shasta – it was the first time Lee had driven that far north on I-5 and was just as impressed as I always am with how gorgeous it is up near the Oregon border. It always makes me feel like I’m home.

We pulled into the campground at Crater Lake and nearly froze to death. The temperature at 8pm was in the mid-thirties. And it just kept getting colder. I can’t remember the last time I camped (in summer) at such cold temperatures. Thank heavens for our incredibly warm Marmot bags. The forecast for Sunday was also cold. High of 49 degrees and a 40% chance of snow showers. We were pleasantly surprised when we awoke on Sunday to sunny skies. While we avoided the snow that day – it still was way too cold. It’s just not right that on the last day of August I would spend the ENTIRE day in long-johns, hat, gloves, capilene, fleece, and down.

Despite the cold we had a near perfect day. The only thing we would have changed would have been to clear the air to the south so we could see Mt. Shasta’s peak. The forest fires marred that view just a little. We spent the day doing the Rim Drive – a 33-mile drive that is open only during the summer. There are nearly 30 viewpoints along the drive and multiple little hikes that take you out to some incredibly picturesque places. The most notable stopping places were Sun Notch (great views of Phantom Ship), Pumice Castle Overlook (deep orange pumice stone weathered in the shape of a medieval castle), and a random spot in between Phantom Ship and Cloud Overlook. It’s unmarked but there is a little trail that takes you out to one of the furthest most points on the lake. Lee got some great panoramic shots from there. The other incredible vista point was the short hike up to Watchman Peak. The views from there were stunning.

We learned that Crater Lake is the deepest lake in North America and most likely the clearest and cleanest water on earth. The water comes entirely from precipitation – as there are no inflows or outflows of water. With that piece of trivia, we just had to get down to the lake to at least touch it. Some crazy people swim in it. We watched in amazement at the young guy who not only went for a swim in the lake but helped to rescue a scuba diver suffering from hypothermia. We’re not nearly tough enough for that kind of swimming. With 50-degree temperatures outside, all we could do was rinse our hands off in that water.

Surprisingly enough, there is only one point of access to the lakeshore. It’s a short and steep hike down to Cleetwood Cove. Next time we visit Crater Lake – we want to get there early enough to get on one of the boats that tour around Phantom and Wizard Islands. We’ll also make sure that when we come back – temperatures will be a little warmer…..

The detour to Crater Lake was definitely a good choice. It now ranks as one of the top two National Parks we have visited together.