CRATER LAKE NATIONAL PARK

Samantha Virk

While fishing in South Oregon, I was told it is possible to catch trout in Crater Lake. Crater Lake lies inside a caldera, or volcanic basin, created about 7,700 years when the 12,000 foot high Mount Mazama collapsed following a major eruption. The lake averages more than 5 miles in diameter, and is surrounded by steep rock walls that rise up to 2,000 feet above the lake’s surface. The lake itself is 1,943 feet deep at its deepest point, the deepest lake in the United States and the seventh deepest anywhere in the world. It is fed almost entirely by snowfall, which averages 533 inches per year. There is no outlet to the lake; evaporation and seepage prevent the lake from becoming any deeper. The lake level fluctuates slightly from year to year. Its highest recorded level was measured in 1975 when the lake’s surface reached a height of 6,179.34 feet above sea level.

Because Crater Lake is filled almost entirely by snowfall, it is one of the clearest lakes anywhere in the world. On June 25, 1997 scientists recorded a record clarity reading of 142 feet. Two species of fish, rainbow trout and kokanee salmon, also thrive in the lake, the result of stocking between 1888 and 1942. I fished for 4 hours and caught 5 rainbow trout, 2 on flies and 3 silver lures. Two species of fish, rainbow trout and kokanee salmon, also thrive in the lake, the result of stocking between 1888 and 1942. It was a warm 84 degrees that day and while fishing I saw some people jumping into the freezing water and I just had to try it. I did – it was really cold.