Out of concern of another power outage, I’m making this quick and decided to go with an easy, beautiful target. Crater Lake, the caldera left by the massive eruption of Mount Mazama more than seven and a half millennia ago, is the titular center of the US State of Oregon’s only National Park. The lake itself is exceptionally deep and clear, and the surrounding scenery complements it rather well, one might say.

The main header photo, taken by WolfmanSF, has apparently been chosen as Wikipedia image of the day a couple of times. Here is a wider aerial shot–imagine a mountain rising in this place, many thousands of years ago:

Some years back, I drove up to the crater rim with a visitor in April, mistakenly believing that the lodge would be open and operating, for a step-in. It wasn’t–a smaller outlying cafe/shop building was–but the experience of lightly clambering up and across a high snowbank to a clear view of the lake was outstanding enough to steal the show from any minor lodge disappointment.

Stay as warm as you can, everyone 🔥🏔️☃️