We had a rather unusual day. We did not know that there had been a forest fire burning in Crater Lake National Park since July 23rd. Not knowing that, we docked at Diamond Lake RV Park- nice, in the woods, and after lunch headed for the Park. Not too far into the park, we saw signs- Natural Fire- Do not report. One end of the lake- the Lodge end was smoky, but the other was not. As we went further into the park, more smoke.
We stopped at the Visitors Center on the Rim Road and asked questions. We drove on to Crater Lake Lodge, one of the Great Lodges of the West, built in 1915, and tried to make dinner reservations. All were booked until 9:15 pm. But, they served soup and salad in the great room, an accommodation to those who could not fit in the small dining room. We sat in large rocking chairs on the deck overlooking the Lake/ Smoke, and had a drink, then had homemade clam chowder, salad and bread sitting in the lovely old lodge furniture, with a fire in the huge stone fireplace. Before we ate, while sitting on the deck we were regaled by a ranger about the history of the park, lodge, and a man named Steel who had the vision to write congress for 17 years until they declared Crater Lake a National Park.
All in all, we had a very nice day. We will come back someday to have dinner in the lodge, when it is clear, and we can see the lovely lake. Maybe sometime in July. The eastern rim road did not open this year until July 13. They had 17 inches of snow over Memorial Day. We viewed the fire, and all the fire crews standing by in many of the turn outs. They had a ranger at one of the main turnouts explaining all about the fire, and the Park policy of letting it burn until it rained, or buildings were endangered.
Tomorrow we will head for Medford, and hopefully pull in home late in the day. Our bed sure sounds good.
We have read the papers, listened to the TV, and seen campers with American Flags. We know that tomorrow marks a very special day in our history- 9-11-01. Our thoughts will be with all our family and friends, and our minds will be one with all Americans, and remember .
We have had a lovely long trip to the Canadian Rockies. Anne and Gary were real troopers , traveling, camping, enjoying the parks. We all made some wonderful memories of Canada's beauty. We are grateful for the wonderful place we live, and all the lovely places we are fortunate to travel to see.
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