Merry Christmas!

Pumice Desert, Crater Lake

This is the Pumice Desert in Crater Lake National Park (OR) and it is located about six miles north of the actual crater. It was formed about 7,700 years ago from the pumice ejected by the ancient volcano, Mt. Mazama. You can see the great expanse of the desert as well as the myriad tiny holes in the piece of pumice.

The sign at the lookout area said that it will take thousands of years for a forest to get established here due to the poor quality of the soil. It is quite a contrast to go from here to the beauty of the lake up in the caldera.

Crater Lake

This is a view of Crater Lake National Park as seen from a north lookout on the rim highway. This photo was taken on August 2, and the white stuff you see around the edge of the lake is snow!

The little island poking up is Wizard Island. A park ranger told us that the view was hazy because the smoke from massive wildfires in California moved north into the valleys of Oregon. At the bottom of the photo you can see that the haze is beginning to clear, and the incredible deep lapis blue of the lake is starting to emerge.

Unfortunately, there are now Oregon wildfires burning that are affecting towns, some access highways to the park, and hiking trails. It is very dry in most of Oregon right now.