Exploring Oregon

Last weekend, Llama and I took a short holiday and went to Crater Lake. One of the perks of living here in Oregon is the proximity to this truly awesome, natural lake. It takes about 2-1/2 hours to drive down, if the traffic is light, so it makes a great two-day getaway.

On Monday afternoon, we hiked up the 1/4 mile trail at Sun Notch. Short of taking the boat ride, this is the best place to view the “Phantom Ship”. The hike is short but not easy, in spite of a well kept trail, as the grade is steep. Once you reach the top, there are trails to the right and the left, following the rim of the crater.

We headed off to the left, and kept following the rim long after the trail ended. When we stopped, Applegate Peak was looming over head, and the lake was spread out before us. I set up my tripod and took three pictures in hopes I could “stitch” them together into a panorama. The program did a decent job, though I wouldn’t try to sell the resulting picture.

As you can see from this composite image, with this high vantage point you can see Wizard Island to the left and Phantom Ship to the right, and all of the lake in between. This is a really spectacular view, and no photo does it justice. If you ever make it to Crater Lake, take the hike! It’s well worth the view.