8/3/13 Saturday
Crater Lake, OR
I got going and went on a side trail in error, but it had water and I was running low, so it worked out. It was shorter than the PCT, I think. I got back on PCT and saw some dust stirring about off in the distance. I thought it was just some tractor, or car, or something, but I noticed nothing was under it. I got a little closer and realized it was a little twister. I dropped my pack and sprinted towards it. I was gonna throw my hat in, then jump in. Well, it fizzled out in the trees before I could get there. That was the most exciting thing on the PCT so far. It was nuts! There was a wind tunnel going up to a cloud and it was full on making a mess out of sand. I got about 50 yards from it. I had dropped my pack off trail, so it took me about 30 mins to find it among the trees. Oh well. It was definitely worth it. I got to the Mazama Village and had a burger. Then, I headed to the hiker store for a good hiker box scrounging and to pick up my food box that I sent from Ashland. And beer. I got a ride up to the Crater Lake and sat around that restaurant for a sec. The Crater Lake is amazing. It's so blue and it goes down pretty far. An employee asked if I wanted to stay at the employee dorm, so I went for it. They were awesome. I got a shower, laundry, Internet, and beer. The Taiwanese that were there saw that I was hungry, and cooked me up an amazing meal. It was a very college like night in the employee dorm. I was kinda famous, also. Everyone had heard that there was a PCT hiker in the dorm, so I just started to go with it and went around and met a lot of funny and cool people. I was introducing myself by saying, "I'm the famous PCT hiker." The funny thing is that they were always saying, "Oh. I heard about you at work today." Then, a barrage of PCT questions. 'Twas a good night.
As per usual, great stories Dougie! Must have been fun for everyone in the dorm. Have to tell you that when I was in about the 5th or 6th grade I did a school report on Crater Lake. Have always loved that spot. FYI, from my notes:
ReplyDeleteOregon’s only national park. Created in 1902, it is the nation’s fifth national park. It is an extinct volcano in southern Oregon in the Cascade Range. The caldera resulted when Mount Mazama erupted around 8,000 years ago, then collapsed upon itself and eventually filled with water. At 1,947 (or 1,943?) feet, it is the country’s deepest lake and the 7th deepest in the world. The water is clear to more than 100 feet. It is so blue because it is so deep—all colors except blue are absorbed? The road around is 20 miles? Only rainbow trout and kokanee salmon remain in the lake, which was stocked between 1888 and 1941? because it has no native fish.
xo from Auntie Carole