Thursday, July 31 Crater Lake, into California

Thursday, July 31

57 degrees this morning at 6:30.   We have seen lots of fire devastation from last years' fires for miles, particularly in southern Oregon.

 We head towards Crater Lake, first passing by beautiful Diamond Lake. The North Entrance is quiet and it is a bit of a drive to Watchman Overlook for our first awesome view of Crater Lake.   It is one of the most pristine bodies of water, fed only by rain and snowmelt, and so BLUE!  Just amazing.

The elevation at the overlook  is 6,173'.  Formed by the caldera of now-collapsed Mount Mazama volcano,  the lake is 1949' feet at its deepest point - the deepest in the US. It was originally called Giiwaas by the Klamath Indians.  In 1853 it was called Deep Blue Lake, then Blue Lake, In 1865 it was called Lake Majesty and in 1869 got its current name.

It's a little hazy as morning light pours down, but soon clears as we visit other overlooks.

Interesting little "pom-pom" flowers - google says they are western pasqueflower also known as towhead baby flower. A new one to me!

 Wizard Island is a cinder cone formed by an eruption after the caldera was formed.  There is a trail down to the water which is rated "difficult", so we opt to skip it.  We spot several tour boats that are accessed by that trail and the parking area there is packed.

The average snowfall in the park is 41', so it is closed most of the year, sometimes as early as October and as late as July.  This permanent pole helps people find the edge of the road when snow is deep. We've seen them elsewhere this trip, but never this tall!

There is construction on a portion of the 33 mile long Rim Road in the southeast, so we can't circle the lake as originally planned, and the road to Pinnacles is closed - so we detour to Rim Village in the south to get gas, then backtrack to see the rest.

The east side of the lake seems much more rugged.  Just wow!

I see this pretty butterfly at one of our stops. A mile or two later they are everywhere!  We must have taken out a hundred as they flutter around and across the roadway!  They are called California Tortoiseshells and they migrate to high elevations in late summer - in great numbers every few years.  When their wings are closed they are a brownish grey with a tortoiseshell design.

Some other butterflies, too!

Even with my wide-angle lens it is difficult to get the entire lake in a picture.  Here is the best I could do!

By noon when we stop at the visitor's center, things have gotten crazy busy. A kind ranger has told us all campgrounds in the park are full, but we are allowed to boondock in the parking lot at Rim Village, with access to their WIFI and restrooms.  When I ask about National Forest sites outside of the park, heading south, he gives us a couple of names and says we shouldn't have a problem finding a site. 

The scenery is mainly woodlands with occasional streams.  We spot a few deer and Greg spies these osprey in a nest.  We pause to observe and take a few shots.  It appears that these two are large chicks who haven't yet fledged.  While we are there, a parent returns and sits on a nearby pole keeping an eye on us and calling to the chicks.

We think about getting a hotel room in the next sizable town - Klamath Falls, but when we stop at a Comfort Inn (which advertises $125/night) to inquire, the front desk person says they only have a suite available for $300!  It turns out that there is a fair in town for the next two nights and she apologizes but says most everything is booked and rates have been jacked up at all the hotels.  She says we can stay in their parking lot and come in to use their restroom but we opt to continue on.

We enter California which is majorly agricultural, with lots of irrigation.  Cattle, hay fields, turf fields and other crops.  It is mostly flat with hills in the distance.  

Then we come to an Agricultural Inspection stop where ALL vehicles must stop.  We are asked if we have any fruits or vegetable - particularly citrus or avocados and we have both.  He asks our travel plans and finally just says "don't throw anything out the window" and waves us through.

Next we come to an area where a grass fire is burning, probably 200 yards from the road.  Lightning, maybe? Greg notices that some fire officials have just arrived, so we continue on.

We enter the Modoc National Forest and stop at Lower Rush Creek Campground with about 10 campsites, half of which are for tents.  Only one other camper here and one more arrives later.  Nice campground and it is free!  We walk around a bit and Greg cooks chicken burgers we picked up somewhere along the way. 

The cribbage battle continues with all the luck going Greg's way tonight!