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Begin your virtual tour of Crater Lake National Park by clicking on any of the above entry points,
and follow roads or trails through a network of linked images.
Crater Lake is the seventh deepest lake in the world, formed thousands
of years ago by the eruption and subsequent collapse of the volcano
known as Mt. Mazama. It is roughly 5 miles in diameter and 1,958 feet
deep. The lake is famed for the purity of its water and its deep blue color.
Crater Lake was the accidental
discovery of John Wesley Hillman who
was searching for a lost mine when he found himself at the
edge of the caldera overlooking the lake on June 12, 1853.
It became the America's 5th National Park on May 22, 1902
with an area of 183,224 acres and received 417,992 visits in 1999.
The lake is surrounded by the cliffs of the caldera wall which stand
1000 feet above the surface of the water on the average.
The edge of the lake can only be reached by the
Cleetwood Trail, a 2
mile hike dropping about 700 feet from a lower part of the rim. The
Rim Drive circles the lake close to the rim and offers a comprehensive
overview of the lake.
After the collapse of the volcano and the formation of the lake, a
smaller volcano erupted inside the lake and formed
Wizard Island,
a volcano in a volcano. A boat trip to the
Island is available.
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