Crater Lake

The Ride to Crater Lake

 Knowing that it had snowed on the mountain the day before, so I slept in till 8:00am. Got my free continental breakfast before putting my backpack on my 08 Ultra Classic. As I’m packing the bike for the next piece of my journey I notice the cold biting at my face. It’s only late march but I would have thought Oregon would be warmer. With me being from the east coast I would have thought it would have been warmer on the west coast. So I climb into my winter riding gear for the day. There’s something I learned on the road, when there’s a gas station fill up because you never know where the road will turn. After topping off then I head out of Medford, Oregon the spot of my latest stay. As soon as I leave the gas station I see the sign for route 62 Crater Lake Highway. Shortly after rolling out of the last neighborhood, I pass over the Rogue River. Then shortly after passing Rogue Elk Park I see the clouds reflecting off Lost Creek Lake as I take a long sweeping right hander. 

This is the welcome start of a small elevation change with a few sweeping curves as I pass back over the Rogue River. Within a few miles I can feel the excitement build as I reach the forest. As I start heading up the mountain roads they start to get really bad with gravel, mud, and a combination of the two.  While watching the roads I try to take in the beauty of the ride. When I get to the cutoff for the lake the roads change again. This section starts off with loose gravel going into the remainder of shadow snow. It’s causing a lot of fast to slow going, as I get up closer and closer to the mountain’s crest the snow has turned to long sections of straight snow. The last couple of miles have had very little areas without snow. The key to riding in the snow on a bike is the same as in car it just has a bigger pucker factor. As you see a section of snow pick a line that you can ride thru it without changing direction. Pick a line you can also run without really having to change speeds. If you have to change do it with slow steady motion nothing quick.  Going up is easier than down in my opinion, downhill you have gravity increasing your speed against your will. As I come around the last corner the snow is gone all the way through to the parking lot. It’s about 11:00am now there is a couple of cars in the parking lot, I think they’re all employees. I put it on the stand and take a look around, I’m guessing it might have reached 30 degrees out up here.

As I walk towards the lake I look back to notice this side of the building has 15’ of snow drifted around it. I head over towards the edge and snow is deep, maybe 18”. I move back to the road looking for an area that’s been packed down, finding one further down. I make my way to the edge, I raise my eyes from the snow to the lake, it takes my breath away, my eyes are drawn to the brilliant blue water. Darker than any water I’ve ever seen, hell, I’ve only seen a blue that color once or twice in my life. I look to the right, back towards the way I came down the road at the edge of the blue is another extreme. As I look up, the snow is sparkling with reflections of light. Then as your eyes catch the trees rising out of the snow all green and white with snow. I look to the left and find an island rising out of the brilliant blue water. It’s all white with pine trees loosely scattered around the island. As you follow the water away from you to the other side. The mountains jump straight out of the blue and are taupe color with a spattering of white snow throughout. The feeling I have is unsurpassed greater than anything I’ve ever felt. It feels as if the beauty is cutting into my soul, or it’s just the cold.

As I look from right to left taking in every inch of this magnificent scenery, when a father and daughter walk up and break the spell. I had forgotten to take a single picture until they asked me to take theirs, in turn I had them take mine. They are spending some quality time together riding up the coast seeing all it has to offer. I tear myself away from the lake to head towards the visitor center. To my surprise they’re open and I see they have potatoes soup on the menu. After pulling off the boots, coat, and pants, I sit enjoying the soup while I warm for the ride back. When I leave I head to the north entrance of the lake heading towards Route 138 to find it closed. They haven’t plowed it since the snow the other night. I’ll have to leave that for another journey, so I turn heading back the way I came.