When most people view Crater Lake for the first time, their reaction is usually jaw-dropping amazement. And that’s in the summer or fall. View the lake on a bright sunny winter’s day and the view is, well, absolutely breathtaking—a deep azure blue pool surrounded by snow-covered peaks and forest.

At an elevation of just over 6,000 feet and blanketed with an average yearly snow pack of more than 44 feet, Crater Lake National Park is a cross-country ski and snowshoe paradise for casual day trips and extended multi-day adventures.

Some 7,700 years ago, there was no Crater Lake. It was formed when 12,000-foot-high volcanic Mt. Mazama collapsed in on itself after years of internal erosion, leaving a yawning caldera that soon filled with snowmelt waters.
           
Considered sacred by the Native Americans of the Klamath tribe, Crater Lake remained far from the view of white settlers until June 12, 1853, when John Wesley Hillman, Henry Klipper, and Isaac Skeeters happened on it while prospecting for gold.

Word about the lake quickly circulated, and it captured the public’s imagination. A young man named William Gladstone Steel became fascinated by the lake after reading about it while on his way west with his family to settle in Portland.

Steel grew up to be an ardent adventurer and mountaineer, and in 1870 he began a tireless campaign for Crater Lake’s national park designation.

Sixteen years into Steel’s effort, along came a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) party under the command of Captain Clarence Dutton. Dispatched to measure the lake’s depth, Dutton’s party hauled a half-ton ship called the Cleetwood to the lake, and once they had it afloat used it to measure the lake’s depth. They calculated, via a crude system, the depth at 1,996 feet, just 53 feet above the current scientifically measured depth of 1,943 feet. Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States and the seventh deepest lake in the world.

Dutton’s expedition and Steel’s tireless work was instrumental in getting President Theodore Roosevelt to declare Crater Lake a National Park, on May 22, 1902. Thirteen years later, a private developer built Crater Lake Lodge, and three years after that the Army Corps of Engineers completed the Rim Drive that circumnavigates the lake.

It’s along the Rim Drive in winter that skiers and snowshoers embark on multi-day trips around the lake. The preferred way to travel, starting from the Rim Village, is counter-clockwise. This way, travelers start with a long downhill and then ascend gradually for miles before making a long steep climb to sparsely wooded terrain and a side road that leads to Cloudcap, with its spectacular view of the lake.

From the Cloudcap junction onward along the Rim Drive, the countryside becomes more open, with stunning views of the lake at both Palisade and Pumice Points. From Pumice Point on, the Rim Drive begins to turn back north, going past the towering Watchman rock formation on one side of the road and Wizard Island out in the lake on the other side. Moving along, the road now rises and falls over succeeding long stretches until it terminates, after 32 miles, back at the Rim Village.
           
If you want to extend your outing, there are many side-trip options for ski and snowshoe around Crater Lake. Ascending Mt. Scott for some open-bowl skiing, for example, or simply exploring in wooded areas or along the lake’s cliffs. It’s also possible to get a feel for the lake and its surroundings by exploring within just an hour’s distance from Rim Village.
           
No matter how long a trip you undertake, make sure to bring a camera. This is particularly true in late winter and early spring, when days of clear and sunny weather follow storms. In the heart of winter, gaps between storms, which hit the park from both the north and south, are more a matter of minutes than days. And while the area’s wildlife has largely moved to lower elevations come winter, rest assured that avian life in the form of Clark’s Nutcrackers will seek you out in hopes of getting some tidbits from your picnic lunch.
           
The park can be a dangerous place. In winter, an understanding of avalanche conditions is mandatory, as there have been sizeable slides along portions of the Rim Drive over the years. If conditions seem a bit dicey, keep ski and snowshoe forays short and focused on the level and open areas and more wooded terrain near the Rim Village.

During the winter months, the Rim Café and gift shop remain open, but there’s no equipment rental facility, so explorers must bring along their necessary gear as well as all the essentials: water, food, first aid, extra clothing, sunscreen, and a GPS receiver or cell phone. Multi-day adventurers are advised to pack for the worst and hope for the best when it comes to weather.

When You Go
Crater Lake Lodge is no longer open for lodging in winter. There are motels in nearby Fort Klamath and Klamath Falls. Campgrounds can be reserved by calling 888/774-2728.

The north entrance is closed for most of the year, from November through most of June. The south and west entrances are open year round. Snowy and icy road conditions can occur any time of the year. Call 541/594-3000 for the most current weather and road information.

From Roseburg — Route 138 east to Route 230, south to Route 62, east to the park’s west entrance.

From Bend — Route 97 south to Route 62, north and west to the park’s south entrance.

Crater Lake National Park’s official website: nps.gov/crla/index.htm

Entrance fee: $10 per car for a seven-day pass.

Steel Visitor Center — open 10 am to 4 pm daily from early November through early April; 541/594-3000

Ranger-led snowshoe walks take off from the Steel Center at 1 pm every Saturday and Sunday from late November through late April. Call 541/594-3100 to register in advance.

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