Lindberg flew over Crater Lake in 1927.

Mrs. Gantz from Lone Pine School

Lone Pine School – Come properly dressed for all kinds of weather. It snowed two days before our September fieldtrip. We played in the snow rather than hiking trails.

Fresh September Snow Lone Pine School

Watchman Overlook – A September snow storm.

Fresh September snow!

Proper Winter Clothing in 1910.

Dressed up to go skiing!

Best best dressed skiers from the 1950s.

Roosevelt School 6th grade. These kids came prepared for a blizzard and they got one!

Winter dress in 2016 due to Global Warming.

First Stop – Natural Bridge - where the Rogue River disappears underground

The Rogue River disappearing beneath the Natural Bridge.

Before the people bridge was built we took the kids across the real Natural Bridge.

On the real Natural Bridge.

The Natural Bridge kid cage.

The People Bridge.

Notice the Kayak being dropped into the Rogue River just below the Natural Bridge.

Second Stop – Godfrey Glen A glaciated valley filled in with a pyroclastic flow

Dressed for winter in September..

Godfrey Glen

Godfrey Glen - Can you find the missing mountain?

Nick and Mike look alike.

3rd Stop – The Watchman – are you ready for lunch at 8,025 feet?

Weather permitting. Pack it in / Pack it out! Bring a jacket, it can be windy.

Let’s get started – The Crater Rim Run

Hiking up the Watchman in July back in the day when it used to snow at Crater Lake. Hike led by Ranger Larry Smith.

The Watchman Fire Lookout built in 1932Elevation: 8025 feet

2,000 feet straight down to the Lake.

Look at those polished boots!

1940

Larry Smith with granddaughter DeeDee.

It was so snowy there was no place to sit for lunch.

Where’s the Lake??

The wind’s beginning to blow!!!

There is a lake out there!

Why does the Watchman Tower have copper wires leading down to the ground?

Why is there so much copper wire this high in the sky?

Have you figured it out yet?

4th Stop – Cleetwood Cove Trail

1.2 miles down to the water

Elevation gain of 656 feet

First the safety talk. No running on the trail. No rock throwing. No trail cutting. Llao Rock in the background.

Beware of alligators swimming in Crater Lake!

You are looking into the purest and clearest lake in the world!

Crater Lake Blue!

Heading out to pick up the tour boats.

Heading out to pick up the tour boats.

The yellow floating “scum” is actually millions of pine pollen grains.

Pine pollen - Natural polution – It floats for a few weeks and then water logs and sinks.

Cleetwood Cove – Notice the row boats that used to be available for rent. But no more.

During the summers of 1975 and 1976 Crater Lake rose enough to completely cover the dock at Cleetwood Cove. The Lake rises and falls 2 – 5 feet each year depending on precipitation.

Cleetwood Cove’s new million dollar dock.

The new million dollar dock at Cleetwood Cove.

Crater Lake is very cold!

Amber Smith

Yikes! It is so cold I’m out of here!

Michi Fujikaki, 13, twist diving into Crater Lake.Michi is from Japan and attended Jacksonville School

Michi Fujikaki sunning himself against a warm rock after a very cold swim. Michi used to attend Jacksonville School.

5th grader Greg White from Jacksonville.

Grant Hilton walked all the way down the Cleetwood Cove Trail on crutches.

And back.

To celebrate their 10th birthdays, the twins were given a boat ride on Crater Lake.

Heading for the three-hole Comfort Station around the corner.

It poured rain on these kids down at Cleetwood Cove. They were soaked.

Oh the burn! – climbing from 6,175 feet up to 6,831 feet.

5th Stop – Sinnott Memorial Overlook

1,000 feet straight down to the water while hugging onto a sheer cliff!

This is the way lady rangers used to dress. The high heels worked well in the soft pumice.

Ranger Larry Smith giving a geology talk at the Sinnott Overlook.

6th Stop – Crater Lake Lodge

7th Stop - The Rim Village Café - Snack, drinks, and VERY expensive souvenirs

Mt. Mazama 7,700 years ago. A mile of the mountain is missing

Mt. Lassen erupting May 1915

The May 1915 eruption of Mt. Lassen as seen from downtown Redbluff, California.

The climactic eruption of Mt. Mazama began with a towering column of pumice and ash rising from a vent located northeast of the summit, which resulted in pumice deposits as thick as two inches as far away as Alberta, Canada.

Built

Blew

Fell

Filled

This blue sea of silence draws us into its spell and forever changes the way we view ourselves as we try to understand the awesome forces that created this famous place. We realize that we cannot improve upon it. We feel a commitment to protect the integrity of such places. We need to leave Crater Lake just the way it is, so that it may continue to inspire us.” Ron Warfield, Author, former Crater Lake Park Ranger.

“

Island of Vulcano --------V

Mt. Vesuvius

Mt. Etna

Now, a look at three Italian volcanoes. Italy is one of the most volcanic areas in the world.

What is this building?

Larry Smith waving from near the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

185 feet tall

4 degrees of lean

842 years old

Looking across the Bay of Naples at Mt. Vesuvius

Over 3,000 people died on August 24, AD 79.

Pompeii was rediscovered in 1748. The soft ash allowed easy digging.

Over 1,000 plaster body casts have been made.

The unearthed city of Pompeii with Mt. Vesuvius in the background. Glowing avalanches/pyroclastic flows of volcanic ash from Vesuvius in AD 79 completely covered the prosperous city of Pompeii, killing thousands of people.

The summit of Mt. Vesuvius.

Larry Smith on the summit of Mt. Vesuvius, April 2015.

Island of Vulcano --------V

Mt. Vesuvius

Mt. Etna

The island of Vulcano is about 18 miles off the coast of the Italian “boot toe”. Named after the Roman god, Vulcan. The ancient Romans believed it to be the chimney of the fire god Vulcan's workshop. It is from this island’s name that we get the word “Volcano”. The island is made up of several volcanoes. The last eruption was in 1890.

Larry Smith on the summit of Vulcano, Italy. April 2015

Gentle and placid Mt. St. Helens prior to its 1980 catastophic eruption.

Mt. St. Helens erupting on May 18, 1980.

Mount Pinatubo, the Philippines, June 15, 1991. Oh the destruction!

How would you like to be driving this truck?

Pyroclastic flows (glowing avalanches) roar down mountain sides at speeds of over 100 miles per hour.

Mount St. Helens certainly reminds us of the power of nature, and we can certainly see that in the evidence of the 1980 eruption that's all around us, ... And here we have an opportunity to understand the forces that lie beneath our feet.

Charlie Swingle flies his Taylor Craft airplane at 10,000 feet over Crater Lake. Mt. McLoughlin can be seen in the background.

“To say that this wonderful lake is grand, beyond description, is to give an idea of its magnificence. Everyone gazes at it in almost tearful astonishment.”- Jim Sutton, Editor, Jacksonville - Oregon Sentinel newspaper, 1869 and “Crater Lake” namer.

July 1, 1933 – 1938 - out on the Rim Drive

Snow Canyon

Rim Drive, Crater Lake National Park, June 1961. Larry and Lloyd Smith’s ‘57 Chevy.

Rim Drive, March 2015, VIP Ranger Larry Smith visiting with hikers. Hikers? In March at Crater Lake? Where is the snow?

Rim Drive, March 2015, VIP Ranger Larry Smith visiting with hikers.

June 1971 Park Headquarters. Annual snowfall at Crater Lake has dropped from 600 inches (50 feet) to 196 inches in 2015 (17 feet). But precipitation was normal at 68 in.

Little Brian Smith, who eventually grew up and climbed Mt. Everest is looking out the second story window.

Winter 2013 -2014

Winter 2014 – 2015 Only 196 inches of snow.

Charlie True drove the first car to the Rim of Crater Lake on August 14, 1907. The trip took four days from Medford.

It was a brand new REO car, which eventually became the Oldsmobile.

Rich people dressed fancy when they visited national parks 80 years ago.

Imagine feeding bears while wearing a fur coat!

“Jeff finds a friend.”

Crater Lake bears had names.

“Pete’s turn.”

“Fritz gets his….”

“Preparing for winter.”

Lloyd Smith attempting to feed a bear at the Park’s garbage dump. Some days we would see as many at 20 bears feeding off the garbage. The dump has since been closed.

A lard bucket found at the dump. Don’t stick your nose into other people’s business.

Is this safe? The sign reads, “DANGER! KEEP BACK!”

Using the “Keep Back” sign as a tripod for their camera and stepping in the danger zone.

These folks were lucky, they climbed back over the rock wall uninjured. Unlike so many others .

12 people died this year from taking Selfies by backing over cliffs, walking into traffic or by driving into trees. Yes, people do take selfies while driving!

It “It is 3,000 feet to the BOTTOM…And no undertaker to meet you. TAKE NO CHANCES. There is a difference between bravery and just plain ORDINARY FOOLISHNESS.”

in 1988-1989 a manned, one person submarine was used to explore the bottom of the lake. The underwater exploration found a number of hydrothermal vents on the bottom of the lake and along the caldera wall and strange "gardens" of yellow-gold bacteria.

Scientists also found that light penetrates more deeply into this lake than in any other lake in the world.

Deep Rover

August 2011, 9 wet-suit equipped swimmers, swam from Wizard Island to Cleetwood Cove in 4 ½ hours

Swimming Crater Lake twice.

The GPS map proves they did it.

Tony Lillios, 43, and Kate Howell, with Park Rangers after their 6 1/2 hour swim.

Are there fish in Crater Lake?

When first discovered, Crater Lake had no fish. In 1888 - 35 rainbow trout were dumped into the lake.

Eventually over 1.7 million fish were poured into Crater Lake. Lake stocking ceased in 1940.

Only rainbow trout and kokanee salmon have survivied.

You can fish in Crater Lake without a fishing license.

The boy is Greg Tinseth with a nice rainbow trout and 5 kokanee salmon.

Kokanee are land locked within the waters of Crater Lake. Without a trip to the ocean they stay very small.

Brian Smith and Greg Tinseth from Jacksonville with a nice mess of kokanee salmon.

Crayfish are not native to Crater Lake. They were introduced 100 years ago to provide food for the fish that were introduced into the lake 130 years ago. Both non native introductions have upset the pristine balance of Crater Lake.

Crayfish now infest 90 % of the lakeshore.

In 1924 Crater Lake froze over. One of only two times in 100 years.

In 1949 Crater Lake froze over for the second time & was frozen for nearly 3 months.

March 1949 – Two park rangers skied over to Wizard Island.

A Tucker SnoCat, from Medford, cruising along the Rim of Crater Lake. You cannot do this any more.

Larry Smith digging out his Jeep after a major snow dump.

Lloyd Smith digging out his Toyota Prius

The word “roof-alanche” was invented at Crater Lake. A dog was killed by a roof-alanche several years ago while being walked by its master. This car was almost “killed”.

Get up and let’s go racing on our snowshoes!

Road Kill

porcupine

Ranger Larry Smith pulling a road-killed deer off the road.

Its mama was killed by a car.

No stripes across the face.

This is a Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel.

Notice the stripes across the face.

This is a chipmunk.

So what are these animals?

They are called “chipmunks”, but are they?

Chipmunks

or

Ground Squirrels??

GMGSGolden Mantled Ground Squirrel

A Cascadian “red fox” in a dark phase.

Phantom Ship – Ranger Larry Smith is on board the tour boat.

Find the Phantom Ship. See now why it is called a “phantom”?

Ranger Larry Smith on board.

The Old Man of the Lake is a 30-foot tall hemlock stump that bobs and floats vertically in Crater Lake, and has since at least 1896. Scientists have studied the stump for over 100 years, chalking its longevity and oddity up to Crater Lake’s ice cold, clear, clean water. During one month in 1938, it is noted, the Old Man traveled at least 62.1 miles with the ebb and flow of the lake.

The lake water is so clear the full length of the Old Man is visible.

The Old Man of the Lake. This up-right floating hemlock log has been cruising Crater Lake for over 120 years. “He” travels about 20 miles a month. Pushed by the wind.

It is now illegal to climb onto the Old Man of the Lake because the top is rotting.

The Lady of the Woods was carved out of solid lava rock by Dr. Russell Bush in 1917.

Later on when it was “discovered”, people thought it was the mummy of an Indian woman encased in a pumice flow from Mt. Mazama.

“Older than the pyramids of Egypt”, they claimed.

A major disaster. The boathouse burns on Wizard Island. 1972

The boathouse on Wizard Island burned far into the night. The fire crew can be seen arriving by boat. The boat being built on the Island can be seen sitting near the shore.

These towering needle-like formations of rock, called fossil fumaroles, projecting from the Sand Creek Canyon floor, were formed under sheets of volcanic pumice that preceded Mazama's collapse filling in a glacier-carved valley.

As the surface of the hot pumice cooled over the years, steam and gases were released by the hot rocks underneath through vents and tubes that were welded into cement hardness by their passage. These ancient vents now stand alone due to the erosion of the surrounding softer materials.

Ranger Lloyd Smith and his mount – Duke.

Ranger Lloyd Smith

The Lone Ranger rides again!

The Lone Ranger rides again!

Doing what Ranger Larry Smith does best – picking up garbage and cigarette butts.

A hot trailer wheel bearing ended this family’s dream vacation to Crater Lake National Park

While taking in the awesome beauty of Crater Lake, this lady drove off the road. She was one lucky lady!

“My owner told me I had to wear a helmet.”

The first boats placed in Crater Lake were slid down the Caldera.

The Cleetwood – the first scientific boat on the Lake – August 1886. Using a reel of piano wire the crew measured the Lake’s depth at 1996 feet. The 2nd deepest lake in the world at that time. Eventually, using sonar in 2000, the Lake was measured at 1943 feet.

Over the years, boats on Crater Lake have been slid down the rim, built on the island, and flown in by helicopter.

Most of the early boats were crushed by heavy snows. Finally strong boat houses were built keeping some of the boats on the Lake for 40 years.

Entering Crater Lake National Park about

1910.

Sometimes the roads were so bad the cars would just fall apart.

There was so much snow during the winter of 1983 that Ranger Larry Smith was doing snowshoe hikes in August!