Oregon Crater Lake National Park map and highlights

Crater Lake, Oregon on the map. National Park Crater Lake  (Oregon state) on the map of US.     

Above, far right: This view of Crater Lake shows the Phantom Ship, an unusual rock formation.     

Below: An aerial view of Crater Lake. For most of the year, this incredibly blue lake is rimmed by a circle of snow.   

Crater Lake, Oregon     

Established: 1902   Acreage: 160,290     

Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the US (1932 feet), is located  inside Mount Mazama, a once active volcano. Erroneously named when a  camping party, led by Jim Sutton, put a boat onto the lake and explored  Wizard Island, the lake is not in a crater, but rather sits in a caldera  formed by the volcano's collapse.     

For half a million years Mount Mazama produced huge eruptions,  interrupting long periods of inactivity. Ash, cinder and pumice exploded  upward, building the mountain to a height of about 12,000 feet.  Satellite cones on Mazama's flanks created today's Mount Scott, Hillman  Peak and The Watchman. Glaciers periodically covered Mount Mazama's  flanks and carved out the U-shaped valleys, such as Munson Valley and  Kerr Notch. About 6800 years ago the climactic eruptions occurred. The  Mazama magma chamber emptied and the volcano collapsed, leaving a huge,  bowl-shaped caldera in its place. The mountain vanished. It lies  scattered over eight states and three Canadian provinces. In the park's  Pumice Desert, ash lies 50 feet deep. The explosions were 42' times  greater than of Mount St Helen's in 1980.     

At first the caldera's floor was too hot to hold water. Renewed  volcanism sealed the caldera and built the Wizard Island and Merriam  cones, volcanoes in a volcano. After volcanic activity stopped, water  began to collect. No stream runs into or out of the lake, so it is  considered a closed ecological system.     

Originally, Crater Lake contained no fish. Six species were  introduced, and of these three remain today: rainbow and brown trout and  kokanee salmon. Today, the lake is no longer stocked so that its  natural system can be preserved.     

Nestled amid rolling mountains, volcanic peaks and evergreen  forests, this incredibly blue lake is a breathtaking sight. For much of  the year, a thick blanket of snow encircles the lake, creating a winter  wonderland. At higher elevations, the snowpack prevents fires and  insulates the roots of the mountain hemlocks, which grow to enormous  sizes in spite of the short growing season. Also found are shasta red  fir and whitebark pine. At the lower levels, ponderosa pine prosper, as  do shrubs and wildflowers.     

A number of birds and animals inhabit the park. Ravens, jays,  nutcrackers, deer, ground squirrels and chipmunks are frequently seen.  Present, but seldom seen, are elk, black bear, foxes, porcupines, pine  martens, chickaree squirrels and pikas. Hawks, owls, juncos, chickadees  and nuthatches make their home in the backcountry. All of these  creatures are intertwined in complex relationships with the plant life  and natural forces of the land.     

Right: In the midst of the lake, lies  Wizard Island—a volcanic cone formed after Mount Mazama collapsed and  created the caldera that holds the lake and the island.     

Below: Artist Jaime Quitero's rendering of  Crater Lake on a clear, summer afternoon. The four block diagrams show  the stages of volcanism leading to Mount Mazamas collapse:     

1) Magma spews forth from the earth's interior a half million years ago as the cone-building stage begins.     

2) Vents and cones develop on the mass, weakening it.     

3) About 4850 BC, the mountain loses internal support and collapses when the mass blew out of the cone.     

4) The explosion created the caldera which Crater Lake now occupies.   

Crater Lake, Oregon on the map. National Park Crater Lake  (Oregon state) on the map of US