August 13, 2016 - Crater Lake National Park & Chiloquin, WA

We were up very early at 6:15 am. It was very sunny and there were no clouds in sight.

We decided to have breakfast at Peak to Peak Restaurant inside the casino. We got 20% discount on our breakfasts by using casino player card.  Their bacon was very tasty and delicious.  Everything else was good, also.

We packed the stuff we needed for today's visit at Crater Lake National Park.  We left the casino at 9:10 am, turned right to get on US 97 North.

While on US 97 we pulled into Collier Memorial Campground because we wanted to see what the campground is like.  At that time there was no vacancy, but we told the ranger that we wanted to visit the campground. He let us in and we explored the area, figuring out which sites will be perfect for our Lil' Home.  The campground is very nice, has lots of shade.  A lot of campers there wore jackets!

We then continued driving on 97 N, made a left turn to get on 138 ( Umqua Highway) at Diamond Lake Junction. We were very relieved when we saw the sign that the North Entrance Gate to Crater Lake was open.  Since it is a National Park and we have Eagle Pass card we went in for free. Otherwise, it would be $6 for motorcyclists or $10 per vehicle.

We had read so much about Crater Lake and wanted to visit it one day. And, here we are visiting it today.  It is the main star at Crater Lake National Park.  The water color is such a deep blue and is bluer than the sky! The lake is the deepest in the U.S. and was caused by the collapse of the volcano Mount Mazama thousand years ago.

A long wait at the gate to go in Crater Lake National Park

Since there was a running/biking event going on throughout the day all vehicles must travel clockwise on East Rim Drive until after the event was over at around 2 pm.

We went to the first overlook at the North Junction (7,025’). We were in awe of the beauty and the deep blue color of the lake.  Our eyes were fixed on the surroundings for a long while.  Edith had read so much about Crater Lake, had it on her bucket list to visit, but did not realize how beautiful it is when seeing it with your own eyes.  To the left of the overlook is a towering rock called Llano Rock (8,049’).  We pulled into several overlooks.

We left our footprints there 

Partial view of the Crater Lake

Llano Rock

We continued driving the rest of the loop, checking out sites at each pullout.  Not some pullouts offer great view of the lake, but there were others that will make your jaw drop to the floor!

Mount Thielsen
9,184'

See how clear the water is

Glacier at the bottom

Erwin admiring the view

Phantom Ship
A small island in Crater Lake
It looks like a ghost ship

Phantom Ship on the bottom right side

Pinnacles
Towering Needle-like formations 

Cheez-It
Who left it there? Not Edith...
That's one of Edith's favorite cracker snacks.
One of the hikers left it for ground squirrels or chipmunks.
Not a great idea!

After Pinnacle Overlook we drove up to see 115' Vidae Falls, one of three waterfalls within the Crater Lake National Park.

Lunch at Rim Village Cafe

We were all smiles before the camera snapped, but Erwin
changed his mind and put his finger in Edith's ear. Thus, the
expression! 

Erwin signing "Tired" at the end of our visit

Flag-shaped Tree caused by strong winds
blowing in one direction

A fire at Bentley area near Watchman Overlook (West Rim), caused by human error, was started on July 31, 2016.

Wizard Island in Crater Lake

Lots and lots of porta potty for firefighters to use

Panoramic view of the Crater Lake

It was nice visiting you and thank you for showing us your natural beauty and formations.

We went back to Kla-Mo-Ya Casino RV Park, rested a bit before walking to the casino to have dinner at Peak to Peak Restaurant. Their special for dinner was Chicken Parmesan with sides.  It was very good and the price was reasonable.