Crater Lake National Park, Prairie Campground and Newberry Volcanic National Monument in Oregon

Our route north was going to take us around Crater Lake National Park. Aaron and I looked at the map, decided we were not in a rush, and we should drive through the national park instead of around it. Why would we waste an opportunity to see something beautiful? Detour time!

This lake was once the peak of Mount Mazma Volcano which collapsed and became the deepest lake in the United States and the 7th deepest lake in the world. According to the National Park service it is the cleanest and clearest body of water in the world. It was beautiful! And in July there was still snow! To Aaron and I (southern as we are) snow existing in July is crazy. We both knew that snow exists, especially in high altitudes, but seeing snow in July was a novelty to both of us.

We drove the western half of Crater Lake NP and then we kept heading north to our next destination, Prairie Campground near the Newberry Volcanic National Monument. The campsite was so dusty and dry! Down a hill, behind our site was a creek. It was a nice distrqaction from the dry, dusty site we had chosen. In the evenings, with the windows open we would fall asleep hearing the distant babbling of the creek.

We decided to head on up to the volcanic monument. We saw lava flows that had turned into obsidian, and a beautiful waterfall. We took some dirt roads and learned that there are a lot more volcanos in the US than we had ever imagined. This was an educational and beautiful excursion.

We really enjoyed exploring the national park, our campsite and the Newberry Volcano, but it was time to head north again for one more stop in Oregon. Our truck needed another wash. We were headed back to Boardman for a bit (Amazon packages, our mail from Florida and full hookups) before finally going into Washington and getting to see our oldest son, Gage.