Day 21

 July 7 (Crater Lake National Park, OR)

It wasn't as cold as expected and I slept great (I got hot and had to take off my blanket at one point!). We all seemed a bit tired waking in the morning, so we decided to eat breakfast out (rather than make it at home). We walked to get breakfast at Annie Creek Restaurant in Mazama Village, but we found that it doesn't open until 11:00am, so we instead jumped into the car and drove to the Rim Village Cafe at the peak of Crater Lake. We grabbed (excessively expensive) breakfast sandwiches and coffee/hot chocolate, then walked the village-portion of the Crater Lake hiking trail, reading placards along the way with history behind the Mount Mazama, the lake, and some of the social and ecological impact of the eruption that created what we now call Crater Lake.

We explored the Rim Visitor Center, The Community House, and the Sinnott Memorial Overlook. None of us had ever seen water so blue and clear (and bright-green along the edges of the land).

The cold here was crisp but not biting (and sun was especially warm) - I really loved it up there and wanted to hike further along the rim, but Ev and Til weren't really having it, so we headed back to the campsite to regroup for the afternoon.

We spent a while reading, writing, and coloring/painting - we really hadn't had much time for our leisure activities the last few days, and it was refreshing and rejuvenating. After lunch, we went on the Annie Creek Canyon Trail into the valley to the beautiful rushing creek.

The water was so clear and cold! The trees were amazingly tall along the way, gorgeous pine trees that grew multiple around the parent trunks.

Tilda remarked about one stump from a fallen tree and how the tree wasn't dead - just the part above the ground; that it will grow because the roots were still alive - and she was right. We came upon some patches of snow and had a couple snowball fights along the way. It was so strange walking on snow in July, and I couldn't believe the snow was as snowball-able as it was! This hike was perfect and exactly what we all needed. It brought us all much joy and opportunity for body movement.

We made a huge fire and spent the evening relaxing. We planned to get a bunch in tomorrow since we don't want to arrive too early for Matt and Lucie - they will be working. I hope we don't interrupt too much of their work and daily flow (but I also can't wait to see them!).

This was a great last full day in a magical place.