When someone at Crater Lake National Park says, “Take a hike!” it’s not some negative. At Crater Lake it’s good advice. Deciding where to hike can be challenging. If I’m asked where to take a hike, my answer is usually the hike I took most recently. Most of the favorites involve viewing the lake. While views from any of the…

There is no bad way to take the 33-mile-long Rim Drive around Crater Lake. Most people drive around the lake, stopping at overlooks at places like Discovery Point, The Watchman, North Junction, Cloudcap, Kerr Notch or, of course, Rim Village, for wow-inducing views of the lake. Over the years I’ve done my gawking while on the Crater Lake Trolley or,…

It often comes as a surprise, or shock, when visitors to Crater Lake National Park arrive in May, June and even July and learn that, sorry, Rim Drive around the lake is still closed by snow. And that’s the messages they’ll likely hear this late spring and early summer. After several years of relatively little snowfall, at least by Crater…