Crater Lake and Waterfalls

Crater Lake

After visiting the tide pools, Caty and I headed north for our last stop: Crater Lake National Park in southern Oregon. 

As I mentioned, Crater Lake has been a real challenge for Caty. The first time we tried to go, we had to completely change our plans because of severe forest fires. Then, when she went with her friend, Marcie, the smoke was so thick they could barely see the lake. 

This time, we were hoping for clearer skies. I have already blogged about Crater Lake National Park, so I will spare you an overview of the Park and the Lake, except to say that Crater Lake is a remnant of a destroyed volcano, Mount Mazama, and is the deepest lake in the United States, the second-deepest in North America and the ninth-deepest in the world. 

The deepest part is 1,949 feet

We planned this trip on relatively short notice, so we were not able to stay in the Park (that turned out later to be a blessing). But, we found a cute little lodge, Union Creek Resort, about 35 minutes away. Yeah, 35 minutes seems far (and it is), but there is very little close to the Park. 

Pleasant and (kind of) near; Photos: Tripadvisor

The Lodge was old and quaint, but comfy. And, the restaurant across the street, Beckie’s, was really good.

Go for breakfast, but get there when the doors open! Photo: Union Creek Resort

Crater Lake National Park

We were happy when we arrived Crater Lake to find that the sky was relatively clear. There was a little haziness, but it was minor compared to what we had seen before. 

It was fairly warm with very little remaining snow

So, we drove Rim Drive one way and then the other way to take photos. The road is normally a circle, but a small section on the far side was under construction, so we had to do one side, loop back, drive the other and then loop back again.

Vidae Falls on the south part of Rim Drive that pulls away from the lake

When we planned the trip, we discussed taking a boat tour of the lake. I had done it in 2019 and loved it. 

On a boat you get closer to the Phantom Ship

But, every time we tried to book a tour, the website said, “Yes, we are opening this summer, check back to book.” In May, that made sense. In June, it made sense because summer comes late at Crater Lake, with Rim Drive not even opening until mid-July. So, OK, July. But, by August 1, opening for the summer seemed unlikely.

When we were by the Visitor Center, we saw a Ranger sitting on the rim and we asked him what the deal was. He seemed a bit annoyed that we asked (maybe he was off duty, but he was in full uniform, flat hat and all) and he took a loooong time to explain.

The short story is that they had gotten new boats, airlifted them down to the lake and fully trained the crews. All that remained to be done is to get Coast Guard Certification and the Coast Guard was taking its sweet time. So, no boats for us. It appears that they did finally open after we had left.

The water is snow melt and rain; there are no streams in or out

There’s not a lot to do at Crater Lake. Most of the hikes near the lake have no shade, so we really didn’t want to do that. Others are away from the lake and what’s the point of that? So, we drove and took pictures ...

Wizard Island and beyond

... and then took more pictures ...

The red formation is called Pumice Castle

We went briefly to the Visitor Center, which was actually temporarily combined with the store while the real VC was being renovated. It was way too crowded to stay more than a minute. In fact, the whole area near the Lodge was crazy crowded. Then, the farther you got along the Rim Drive, the better the crowds got.

We had made reservations to eat at the Crater Lake Lodge restaurant because, from time to time, we like to eat at those classic National Park facilities. 

The room is beautiful and the food was good; Photo: National Trust for Historic Preservation

The service was a little wonky. I got the impression that our server was inexperienced and his English wasn’t very good. He was pleasant, just a bit distracted.

After dinner, we tried to do some nighttime photos over the lake as the Moon rose.

The Moon was so bright that it just wasn’t working

The drive back was dark, dark, dark. But, we made it.

Oooops

Our plan the next morning was to drive into the Park and stop at Mazama Village, which is just inside the south entrance, to get gasoline. We knew that there were not any other close gas stations. Then, we’d explore some more and wing it.

Gas in the Park is a nice plus; Photo: Bipper Travel

When we arrived, the pumps were shut down with just a small “out-of-order” sign. Uh Oh!

We couldn't tell what the problem was or how long the pumps would be out of service (we had gas, just not enough to travel far and back), so we walked over to the camp store to ask. It was closed. Hmmmm. 

Then, over to the restaurant. Dark and empty!

Around front, we saw a sign, “Closed due to Power Outage.” Then, we saw a Crater Lake Hospitality truck and we asked the guys in it what was happening. Well, apparently, some Park workers had severed the main electrical cable while doing road work. The power was out everywhere in the Park and perhaps beyond it and would probably be out all day. We were so glad we weren’t staying at the Lodge (no showers, no food, no lights …).

Crater Lake Lodge; Photo: NPS

Our only issue was gasoline. Since we didn’t know how bad the power issue was and we did know there was power on at the Union Creek Resort, we headed back that way and well beyond to the closest gas station, which was in the town of Prospect, almost an hour away. 

Driving two hours round trip is better than running out of gas, so, we did it

When we got back to Crater Lake, the smoke in the air from distant fires had gotten worse. 

Before and after some PhotoShop and Topaz photo processing

We looked a bit …

Nice reflection

Took some photos …

Wizard Island

Admired some Clark’s Nutcrackers …

The adult, right, was feeding the youngster, left

Pretty Waterfalls

And, then, decided to go investigate some waterfalls in Umpqua National Forest north of the Park. We drove out of Crater Lake's south entrance and up a highway through forest, some burned out from past forest fires. We were hungry and drove and drove and drove looking for a picnic area. Finally, we gave up and stopped in an empty campground. Not five minutes later, we found the first of the waterfalls we were looking for (and it had picnic tables!). 

Clearwater Falls

The first falls we visited was Clearwater Falls, a small cascade that flows out of some dense old growth forest and tumbles over moss-covered fallen logs. 

Marcie and Caty

Because the falls are fed by a spring not too far upstream, they have a consistent year-round flow unlike other falls that swell with snow melt and disappear by late summer (or are affected by dams). 

Clearwater Falls is shaded and spring fed, making the air around the falls delightfully cool, even on a hot day. Caty and Marcie had picnicked at there when they visited (and it was even hotter).

The best way to view the waterfall is to take a short ADA-accessible path to a wooden observation deck.

Then, we headed on to Whitehorse Falls, where the river sluices through a narrow trough in rhyolitic bedrock and falls 14 feet over a wall into a punchbowl pool below. 

Whitehorse Falls

There is a viewing platform that is reached via a short walk from the parking area. There is a campground and picnic area (yeah, another one), as well.

Watson Falls

Then, we headed down the road a little further to Watson Falls.

We had only stopped and looked at Clearwater and Whitehorse Falls because they were easily accessible, but Watson was farther. 

So, we decided to walk up the “easy” path to see Watson up closer.

I am such an idiot. I believed the easy designation (I mean, it was less than a half mile to the top!). I had on open-toed shoes. I didn’t take a walking stick. I had heavy two cameras.

It was a lovely hike and would have probably been fine in hiking boots and with a stick. As it was, it was steep and a bit treacherous. The pay-off at the top was good, but there were a few scary moments. I don’t know why I can’t learn! 

Ok, maybe worth it!

Watson Falls flows from Watson Creek, a tributary of the Cleawater River. With a 294-foot drop over a basalt lava flow, it is the highest waterfall in southwest Oregon and the third highest in the state. 

The trail climbs through a lush, green understory of bushy plants and lots of ferns ... 

The canopy

... with an overstory of tall, shady Douglas-fir and hemlock trees. 

A wooden bridge crosses Watson Creek and offers some good views of the falls, but it isn't appreciably closer than the start of the trail. 

We could have stopped there, but we were already part of the way up, so we kept going.

Then, the path started a pretty steep zig-zig climb. There are some places with nice fence wooden railings, so, except for scree getting in my shoes, it wasn't too bad.

Caty's shot

We pressed on to the base of the falls, which is obscured by boulders. 

Back down the trail a little way, you can climb over some rocks for a better view, but I had already decided I had on stupid shoes and I hate rock scrambling. I was fine staying on the trail.

Caty climbed part of the way and said it wasn't too difficult, except getting back down while trying to juggle a camera. Her efforts paid off with a photo of the complete waterfall, something you can't get from any of the sanctioned viewpoints.

Here's a video of the falls ...

Still, I got some nice photos.

From the top

Coming down without a stick and those shoes was not as easy. Luckily, the trail splits part of the way down and there was a less steep option back to the bottom.

Done!

A long drive

There were more waterfalls down the road, but it was getting late and we were tired. We were told that Toketee Falls is gorgeous, but, honestly, we were done.

So we drove the long trek back to Union Creek (going through the Park so we could see the northern part). We had a yummy dinner (and delicious pie) at Beckie’s. 

We were thankful that we had one clear day at Crater Lake and one day that was OK after being able to Photoshop the pictures.

 

It cleaned up good

We were happy we didn’t stay at a Lodge with no power or services. We were relieved that we didn’t run out of gas. And, we were happy we had visited the Umpqua waterfalls. 

A good day

Tomorrow, we would drive almost all the way back to Sacramento before heading home the next day.

Trip date: July 29 - August 5, 2023