NW Trip '12 - Day 11

6/12/12 - Day 11: We got up, showered, repacked, ate breakfast at the hotel, and hit the road on a rainy Portland day (good riddance!). On our way to Crater Lake, we stopped at a McDonald's for lunch, which actually seemed to settle well. We enjoyed a beautiful drive through Oregon -- lots of green trees, rivers, lakes, and (the key) very few windy roads. We arrived at the entrance of Crater Lake National Park around 3:00 and were greeted by a rather unfriendly park ranger. Good thing we had cash since their credit card machine was down! 

A large amount of the rim drive around the lake was closed due to multiple feet of snow (seeing a trend here?), but we did get to drive around the West Rim Drive for a good amount, stopping for pictures at all the major overlooks. The lake was spectacular and one of my favorite sights on the trip. It was a color of blue that I have never seen in nature before, and despite the cold and the snow on the ground, we had a great time driving around and taking pictures. We stopped at the gift shop for a few souvenirs and some veggie soup for Cari's afternoon snack! On our way down towards our cabin, we made a quick restroom stop at the visitor center and found out that all the hiking trails were closed. There wasn't much to do in the park, but again, the views were incredible and being that this was day 11 on the road, we were okay with that. 

We checked into our very rustic cabin near the campground, unpacked, and put some beer on ice. Cari took a nap while I checked the maps for our trip to the Redwoods tomorrow, looked over pictures, and journaled a little. Once she woke up, we went to eat at the on-site restaurant across the parking lot from our cabin. The staff was very friendly despite the relatively low volume of guests, so it was a good experience. I had a phenomenal fettuccine alfredo with chicken and Cari enjoyed a large stuffed baked potato. After dinner, we went back to the cabin and played some card (Go Fish and Old Maid) before turning in!