Crater Lake National Park is one of the wonders of the natural world. Once a large stratovolcano (known as Mount Mazama) reached a height of over 12000 feet, but a massive eruption 7000 years ago destroyed the summit cone and emptied the magma chamber below, causing the entire mountain to collapse. This formed the 6 mile wide caldera which eventually filled with the brilliant blue waters of 1932 foot deep Crater Lake. The lake surface now lies at 6178 feet, with the surrounding rim varying from about 7000-8000 ft. Massive annual snowfall of over 530 inches buries the area, making ski circumnavigations of the crater rim feasible in winter and spring. However, these deep snows also close Rim Drive well into summer, preventing easy vehicle access to ski mountaineering objectives such as Mount Scott (8926 ft), the highest surviving remnant of the original Mount Mazama.

Click on any photo to go there, or start your tour with the first photo...

Trip Summary: Monday-Tuesday, June 21-22, 1999

This was a private trip, with a party of two (myself and Alex Cronin).