Big Blue

After seeing everything at Olympic I really didn't know if the trip could get any better. I was so stoked to see the Pacific, and then on top of that there was the whale skeleton, shrimp, star fish, anemones, huge ancient trees, a rainforest, and, oh yeah, ancient rock carvings. It was awesome. Don't get me wrong - I was looking forward to the rest of the trip, but, wow, Olympic was really darn awesome. Regardless, we headed south and east (EAST! Imagine that!) down, down from Washington and into Oregon. Another new state for us! We planned to camp inside the park, but when we arrived the Ranger told us the campground was full (there are two in the park, but the Forest Service campground was closed for the season) and our best bet was to turn around and stay at Diamond Lake. Thankfully, this was only ten minutes away and we found a pretty nice site even though the majority of the sites were reserved.

Of course I didn't take a picture of our view, but I did take a picture of the necessary tire rotation. I also fixed a really annoying rattle at this time.

We got up fairly early the following morning and made a quick stop just down the road at the "Diamond Lake Overlook." Here we got good views of Mts. Bailey and Thielson and, of course, Diamond Lake.

Diamond Lake, with Mt. Bailey in the background.

Mt. Thielson.

The cool thing about Thielson is what you're looking at is actually the inside of an old volcano. It started off like a standard volcano, with the typical pyramid shape, growing up and out with each eruption. However, at some point the main caldera got plugged and magma built up inside the chamber, eventually cooling and forming rock. Many, many moons passed and the outside of the volcano eroded away. The harder, more durable igneous rock (from the old magma chamber) didn't erode as fast and that's what we see today. Pretty cool.

Pig and Trig ready for another park.

Our first stop inside the park was at the Pumice Desert, which was a very, very large field of pumice. It formed when Mt. Mazama erupted and sent a huge "glowing avalanche" (direct quote from the sign) of pumice and other volcanic rock into the valley below. This layer is 90' (30m) deep!

Pumice desert.

We stopped by the Pacific Crest Trail again, and then got our first view of Crater Lake. The lake formed when the volcano (Mt. Mazama) erupted about 7,700 years ago. The explosion sent ash as far east as Greenland (according to a sign in Mt. Ranier National Park), and the resulting structure couldn't support the remaining summit cone, causing it to collapse in on itself and form a massive bowl. Eventually precipitation filled in the caldera to a point of equilibrium. No streams enter or exit the lake, so the water is relatively pollutant free. This is why the water is so blue. Clarity readings have been measured at 142' (the record) and average between 80 and 115 feet. The maximum depth is 1,943' which makes it the deepest lake in the US and second deepest in North America. Also impressive is that in 1886 the lake was estimated to be 1,996' deep. Their tools: piano wire suspended from a crank. 

It was way more beautiful than could ever be captured with a camera.

We continued east on the loop road, gradually working our way to the Mt. Scott trailhead. Here are a few pictures from along the way:

Mt. Scott is the highest point in the park, at 8,938' and is the highest Rachel had hiked to thus far. The view from the top was incredible, and Mt. Shasta could be seen on the hike to the summit.

Taken using a tripod made from three trekking poles.

While at the summit we chatted with an older couple who were from Arizona. It was their third time to this park, but the first time they were able to hike the trail because all the other times it was still closed due to snow. Crater Lake receives an average of 55' of snow each year.

After we got down we continued our little drive and went off a spur road to visit the Pinnacles. These structures formed from steam vents (fumaroles). Essentially, steam escaped from below ground. The super hot gases compacted the surrounding soil, essentially turning it to soft rock. Then, the surrounding soil eroded away and left the pinnacles. The kiosk at the trailhead mentioned that the formations were usually hollow. Think inverted ice cream cone. Mmmm.... They reminded us of the Badlands (only different, because the Badlands did not form like this, strictly speaking).

Pinnacles.

We finished up the day by stopping at the visitor center and buying some gifts at the gift shop. On our way out a Ranger was doing a kids' program and was vigorously shaking a soda for a demonstration. Hoping he would open it, we waited for a few moments but were disappointed when he put it back. I think the kids understood about pressure building up inside a coned object...

Even though we only spent a day in the park, it was really, really beautiful. We headed south to Klamath Falls, and then turned east in a big way and drove across Nevada and Utah (staying in Salt Lake City our second night). On to Colorado and the Rockies!!!