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By Root 3089 0

old-growth forest and alpine meadows overlooking the Annie Creek Valley (also accessible by trail). You'll cross Munson Creek at Duwee Falls before you head back to the car. It's a good walk for kids, with lots of possibilities to see deer, elk, rabbits, and grouse.

Watchman Overlook

1.4 miles RT. Moderate. Access: 3¾ miles northwest of Rim Village on West Rim Dr.

With a historic fire lookout perched on its summit, the Watchman is one of the high points on the rim of the caldera. A short but steep (655-ft. elevation gain) hike leads to the top for an outstanding view of the lake, with conical Wizard Island rising from the deep blue of the foreground. This is the shortest climb you can make along the rim of the caldera.

Wizard Island

1.8 miles RT. Easy to moderate. Access: Cleetwood Cove Trail (see above), then boat tour; disembark on the island.

Though it is small, Wizard Island is a great temptation to many Crater Lake visitors. The island, with its steep volcanic cone rising from the deep, is fun to explore for a few hours. This trail climbs 765 feet up to the island's summit. To spend some time here, take an early boat tour, get off on the island, and return on a later boat. Because most of the hiking is on jagged lava rock, be sure to wear sturdy boots.

LONGER TRAILS

Bald Crater/Boundary Springs 20 miles RT. Easy to moderate. Access: Rim Dr. to northwest of Rim Village area; continue to the Northern Park Junction of the Rim Dr. and the northern access road; from here, it's 3 miles down the northern access road to the trailhead, on the left.

The ashy, flat, and rolling Pumice Desert stretches north along the trail as you travel approximately 3 miles toward the 8,763-foot summit of the Red Cone, a miniature Mount Mazama before it collapsed and created the caldera that holds the lake. The plains give way to ancient forests interspersed with fields of wildflowers. At the junction of the Pacific Crest Trail and the Bald Crater Trail, turn right to head for another miniature Mount Mazama experience: Bald Crater Peak. The peak is about 2 miles south of some fine campsites at the end of the Bald Crater Trail, along Boundary Springs, near the headwaters of the beautiful Rogue River.

Crater Peak

6.4 miles RT. Moderate to strenuous. Access: From park headquarters, head east around the Rim Dr. trailhead is at the Vidae Falls Picnic Area.

This beautiful hike takes you to a peak that is also a crater. How? The summit of the hike is the rim of yet another little volcanic cone, south of once-huge Mount Mazama.

The trail begins with an uphill climb through 2 miles of alpine forest and meadow. The steep final .5 mile leads to the summit of Crater Peak, with its panoramic vistas of Sun Mountain, Maklaks, and Scoria to the south, and the rim of Crater Lake to the north. To the west lies Arant Point, near Mazama, and to the east the Grayback Ridge. All of them combine to form an incredible view. Early in the morning or late in the evening, you may see deer or elk.

Discovery Point

2.6 miles RT. Easy to moderate. Access: West end of Rim Village parking area.

This trail, like most trails around the rim, provides brilliant views of the vast lake and Wizard Island below, ending after a short climb at an overlook where John Hillman, one of the first European explorers of the area, first witnessed the beauty of Crater Lake in 1853.

Dutton Creek

4.8 miles RT. Easy to moderate. Access: West end of Rim Village parking area.

If you think the whole volcano experience is about ash and pumice, check out the old-growth forest of hemlocks, fir, and pine on the sometimes-vertiginous Dutton Creek Trail. This is also the section of the Pacific Crest Trail that leads the long-distance hiker up to the rim. For short-timers heading south, it provides an opportunity to get away from the crowds and see something besides a volcano's mouth. That something might be a deer or an elk that appears as you hike down this narrow, heavily forested valley along Dutton Creek. The