Crater Lake National Park

27 August 2025

Indi and I both have birthdays in August, and we like to go somewhere fun and be outdoors to celebrate. This year, we did an Oregon Coast trip for my birthday. For Indi’s, we did a road trip to California that included a stop at Crater Lake National Park.

Día 1

Steel Bay Lookout

We left home at 6:00 am and drove directly to the National Park. We had a boat tour scheduled at 3:45 pm and needed to hike down to the water. So, we left early to make sure we’d be on time.

Steel Bay Lookout

The first spot we stopped when we arrived at Crater Lake National Park was a lookout point on the side of the road, which I am calling Steel Bay Lookout.

Cleetwood Cove Trail

To get down to the lake, visitors need to hike down via the Cleetwood Cove Trail. The trail is 2 miles long and includes a 613 ft elevation loss/gain. When we were there, the parking lot filled up quickly, so arrive early.

We ended up getting down to the lake with a few hours to spare. So, we layed out on the rock to warm in the sun.

When we got sufficiently warm, we jumped into the cold, clear water.

Crater Lake Boat Ride

I booked a boat ride weeks in advance and got the last two spots that day. The tour was a boat ride around the whole caldera that lasted 2 hours. At one stop, the tour guide filled up our water bottles with lake water. Crater Lake has some of the cleanest water in the USA.

Watchman Peak Trailhead

We found the best view of the cone in the center of the caldera was at the Watchman Peak Trailhead.

Crater Lake Lodge

We planned on eating dinner at the Crater Lake Lodge, but they were full. We got dinner at a spot close to our campground which was not great.

Mazama Village Campground

We got to our campground when it was already dark. The stars were beautiful.

Día 2

Train Mountain Railway Museum
Lake Siskiyou

Train Mountain Railway Museum

We started the day with a rather whimsical destination: Train Mountain Railroad Museum in Chiloquin, Oregon. The museum is home to the world’s largest miniature railroad, stretching over 37 miles of 1/8-scale tracks winding through a pine forest. You can take a ride on the miniature train while the conductor teaches you about the location’s history and details about the hobby. Indi was the caboose and had to blow her whistle for us to depart after each stop.

Lake Siskiyou

We entered California in the early afternoon. It was hot! We decided to find somewhere to cool off. Lake Siskiyou is a man-made lake with a great view of Mt. Shasta. The water was cool, but not terribly cold. After we got in and out of the water, we chilled in the sand listening to audiobooks.