What a unique section for geological features! We are hiking through the Siskiyou Mountains in the western Cascade range.
On our first day out from Ashland, we saw Pilot Rock, the volcanic plug, formed by magma hardening within the volcanic vent. This feature was seen by immigrants heading west from 40 miles out.
As we move in and out of forests, we would run into rivers of black rock which was prior lava flow. These rocks are quite challenging to walk over given their odd shapes and sizes.
Crater National Park was beyond what either of us had expected. Crater Lake was formed 7,700 years ago when a 12,000 foot volcano erupted and collapsed. The lake resides in the Caldera (empty magma chamber). The lake is the deepest in the USA at 1,943 feet. There is actually a volcano inside the volcano which formed the small island seen in our photos, called Wizard Island. We walked a portion of the Rim Trail to experience the lake from various angles! Was chilly by the lake, in the 60’s! Quite a change from the mid-90’s we’ve been sweating through.
We were fortunate enough to walk into some trail magic from “Wind Dancer” and “Spare Parts”. We got cookies, chips, soda and new SMARTWATER BOTTLES! Most hikers carry these lightweight plastic 1L bottles instead of Nalgene bottles or water bladders.
We also had some amphibian encounters including a large toad, around the size of a softball and hundreds of tinny dime size forms who just completed their metamorphosis from tadpoles!
For those of those fallowing along, the Middle Fork Fires and Diamond Fires have closed PCT miles 1821.9-1909.5. We now have two large sections of the PCT that we have missed due to fires. We are planning on filling one of those sections in before entering Washington, and hopefully the other section later this year if the trail reopens!
Next stop, Cascade Locks (end of Oregon).
