Finally! Crater Lake

 If Carter Lake is not on your bucket list, it should be!  

Even if you’ve never heard of it add it to your list! At first sight it will take your breath away. 

 As the name implies, it was a volcano.  A massive volcanic eruption 7,700 years ago left a deep basin where a mountain peak once stood.  Centuries of rain and snow filled the basin, forming a deep blue lake whose waters are unmatched in color and clarity.  

Clarity is measured by how far down a black and white disk (Secchi disk) can be seen by the naked eye.  The crystal clear blue water of Crater Lake measures 134 feet making it the clearest lake on earth.

At 1943 feet it is the deepest lake in the United States and the seventh deepest in the world.

Wizard Island did not erupt at the same time but came after the lake began to fill.  

A friend wanted to share our picnic lunch with us 

and brought along a friend of his own.

We circled the rim stopping at several points for  incredible sights and vistas.  

You can see from the pictures below how the sides of the mountain collapsed into the crater.

We learned about the whitebark pine native to this area.  They looked like they were ready for Halloween with their weird positions and bleached color.  

They are also called the “ghost tree”—see, ready for Halloween.  

All in all, it was a wonderful day full of spectacular views and good memories.