Bob and Pam Nodine: Crater Lake

We are now located just south of Bend, Oregon and have faster internet. We spent most of yesterday driving around Crater Lake. Only 4 miles of the Eastern Rim road was open because all the snow had not yet been cleared.

There was still snow but most of the roads were clear

Snow bunnies

The elevation of the surface of the lake is 6178 feet but the rim around the lake is at a higher elevation. We found a survey marker giving the elevation of 7317 feet.

Survey marker on the West rim

A bird we had not seen before and is mostly found in the Northwest is the Clark's nutcracker. This bird cracks open the cones of pine trees and feeds on the seeds. We saw several of these birds around the rim at Crater Lake and I snapped a photo of one looking for a handout at the cafe. Notice in the photo that this bird has a tag on its right leg and must be part of a study. Here is a link if you would like to read more about the Clark's nutcracker.

https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/clarks-nutcracker

Clark's nutcracker

Here are some composites photos of Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the US. Lake Tahoe is the second deepest lake in the US. The deepest lake in the world is in Russia at over a mile deep.