Fine fall weather was a special bonus treat for us as Rachael got four days off from school, so we decided to head to Crater Lake National Park, about 130 miles from Bend. Since we were at the very end of the season for the park (in fact it remained open one additional week this year due to the good weather) we enjoyed an uncrowded experience at one of the nation’s least developed national parks.
Trappers only discovered Crater Lake in 1853, and it was known only to Indians prior to that time. It is essentially a caldera formed from the tremendous volcanic explosion of Mt. Mazama about 7700 years ago. The RV park is named Mazama Campground & has about 200+ sites for both RV’s & tents. For those with big rigs, there are very few drive-throughs which accommodate a rig our size, so during the height of the season it might be difficult to find a site. The campground actually sits below the lake above a ravine with a creek called Annie Creek, which has an enjoyable 1.7-mile loop hike, which we all enjoyed one late afternoon. Elevation is approximately 7100 feet so nights without hookups are cool.
A major restoration was recently completed on the historic Crater Lake Lodge, which allows you to wander through all public areas and enjoy the dining room and back patio which gives spectacular views of the lake. A small foyer area is devoted to telling the history of the hotel and park development with a video of the restoration.
One of the highlights of the trip was taking the rim drive (approx. 40 miles total from Mazama Campground) on the scooters. It made it easy to pull over & enjoy all the pullouts and views from every direction. It truly feels as if you’re on top of the world as the view stretches east & west & south across undulating mountains and as far as Klamath Lake. The road is narrow and winding with some grades and cliff hangs so is better done without an RV. The north road in to the park is also not for the faint of heart as there are several-mile stretches with no guardrails and thousand foot drops. Pulling the big RV in that way was not a comfortable experience!
