hikes and other activities at Crater Lake

Hi,

We will be visiting Crater Lake in mid-July and have booked one night there in the cabins (motel). We thought it would be good to have some time in the park rather than driving all the way there, around, and out on the same day.

Other than driving around the rim drive, are there any interesting hikes that can be done at that time of year that are not too lengthy? Any suggestions as to how best to use the time in the park?

Any info would be appreciated.

hikes and other activities at Crater Lake

http://www.nps.gov/archive/crla/brochures/

dayhikes.htm

cut and paste unless this fits

nps.gov/archive/crla/brochures/dayhikes.htm

www.trails.com/activity.aspx?area=10406#

hikes and other activities at Crater Lake

Thanks so much for the links to the websites. Very helpful. Have you done any of these hikes? If so, any recommendations, with limited time? (Only the one night in the park.)

Sorry, my only trip to Crater Lake was a 4-hour sightsee. The following report on the Obsidian website (obsidians.org) details a 2006 trip that included a few Crater Lake hikes and might be helpful. Hopefully, you won%26#39;t have your vistas smoked up by forest fires.

Crater Lake Hikes

September 8-9, 2006

After a silent night at Diamond Lake Campground, we started our hike up Mt. Scott (5 miles, 1030 ft.) around 10:00. Smoke prevented us from seeing any of the major mountain peaks. We felt a bit out of place in our usual Obsidian hiking clothes when we met women wearing strapless tank tops. Next stop was the Pinnacles at the end of a dead end road in the park. We walked along the ridge looking down at such odd formations. We were so surprised to stumble on the East Gate to Crater Lake that was closed in 1930. At Rim Village, the Visitor鈥檚 Center is under construction so all the tourists seemed to be at the Crater Lake Lodge trying to make reservations for dinner. The only time available was 9:30. We started up the trail to Garfield Peak (three miles, 970 ft. elevation) and were pleasantly surprised with our views of Crater Lake. We still were unable to see any major peaks. Again we noted that our attire was a bit out of place with so many hikers wearing white pants and spiffy sandals. Back on the verandah at the lodge, we found empty chairs and two tables. A waiter appeared and assured us that we could order appetizers and soup. It was breathtaking to sit in the comfortable chairs, visit with out of state guests, and watch Mt. Scott and Garfield Peak glow in the sunset while we drank Mt. Scott Margaritas and dined on French onion soup and roasted artichokes. On the way back to Diamond Lake, we noted around 30 fire vehicles controlling the wildland fire in the Bybee Creek area.

Saturday, we drove back to Crater Lake and walked up to the Watchman (1.6m., 413 ft.) where we had a good view of the Bybee fire.