Crater Lake National Park – Oregon

We finally made it to Crater Lake National Park! This spot has been on our bucket list for almost 3 years. [Pardon me while I pat myself on the back for finally making it]

At a max depth of 1,943 feet (592 meters), Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States and the 9th deepest lake in the world! It is incredibly blue and spectacularly clear.

Unfortunately, it was really hot 🥵 and really crowded. We only managed a quick 0.8 mile “hike” and a driving tour around the lake with several stops to look at scenic views. We grabbed Junior Ranger workbooks to go and we will finish those up and mail them in next week for the kiddos badges.

We entered the park at the north entrance and drove clockwise around the entire lake, stopping at Rim Village to pick up our Junior Ranger workbooks and a couple of postcards. The disadvantage to this route, was that we drove most of the way around the lake before we were able to chat with a ranger. In the past, we have really enjoyed the ranger-suggested hikes at national parks. On this trip, we were left to our own guesses about what to do.

Enjoy the photos!

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The ground squirrels were a major cute fest and one of the highlights of the trip. They were almost tame and came right up to us begging for food. We didn’t feed them because it’s not good for them and they might bite! We also caught a glimpse of a marmot but he was way too quick to get his photo taken.

Next up on our trip to Oregon, we’re headed to another spot on our bucket list…