It was back in mid-April I last saw the Pacific Ocean on this journey. It was when I was leaving San Francisco east bound for Santa Rosa and Sacramento. Since then I have done 13 055 miles where I have travelled across the middle of the country, traversed the small states of New England and most lately passed across the top of the country. An oceanic coincidence, it was on the 12th of June I was tossing stones into the Atlantic Ocean at Newport-Rhode Island whilst gazing at expensive and exclusive properties. Exactly a month later, today on July 12th, the Oregon Pacific coast greeted me on a very breezy Saturday afternoon in the seaside town of Yachats. Blue ocean and blue sky. With the strong breeze, it was a cool 65F here in Yachats. Inland by only 20 miles it was a sizzling 92F.

crater lake-oregon

Crater Lake was formed when a massive eruption of Mount Mazama 7700 years ago caused the mountain to collapse, leaving a steaming caldera. Centuries of rain and snow filled the caldera creating Crater Lake. Deep blue and almost black at a second take, the lake is a smidgen short of 2000 feet deep and the deepest in the western hemisphere. At 7500 feet elevation, a looping scenic road circumnavigates the lake providing spectacular views of the vertical walls and deep water. I wonder if the depths of Crater Lake hold any similar secrets to those of Lake Tahoe in California?