USA4CT - Ride Day 16 - Tour Day 13 - June 13, 2013 - Thu

Start Time: 0700 PDT
Stop Time: 1400 PDT
Start Location: Crescent City, CA
Stop Location: Crater Lake NP, OR
Lodging:Crater Lake NP Lodge
Miles Traveled Today: 185
Weather: 58-65-42, Sunny, cloudy, ice pellets, SNOW

It was a cool morning in the 50's heading out from Crescent City. We had breakfast at Fishersman Restaurant (same place we had dinner last evening). Great breakfast with a lot of local folks there. We had called Crater Lake Lodge yesterday and they had a couple of rooms left. We got one double for us and I called Marty (who was also on the USA4CT from Richmond but about a week ahead of us) to let him know there was a single room available and if he wanted to meet up with us. He did, so we were all set for a Richmond/USA4CT/Dominion retiree motorcycle gathering at Crater Lake NP for this evening!

Other than being cool (but the heated jacket took care of that!), it was a beautiful morning heading up US 199 toward Oregon. This was a great motorcycle road with lots of great scenery and twisty pavement. As we approached the town of Cave Junction, I noticed a waypoint that I had marked in my GPS. It was Taylor's Country Store. I couldn't remember the significance of it at the time, but I knew I had bookmarked it for some reason, then I remembered SAUSAGE, of all things. I called Bill on the CB and told him I was going to make a stop at this place that had something to do with sausage. I know he thought (and other times too!) that I was crazy!! We pulled in and it was crowded for that early in the morning. Sure enough, the place cut all types of meats, made sausage and jerky right there in the store. They also had a small restaurant, so we had a cup of coffee (had too much breakfast earlier!). We both ended up buying some beef jerky, it was really good. Pretty neat place. The family there has been making sausage since 1924 and it was definitely popular with all the people in the area! I remember now reading about this place on another motorcycle ride blog from the area. That is why I had bookmarked it on my GPS.

Just about anything in the meat, sausage, jerky line was in this store!

Some of their packaged meats!

At Grants Pass we jumped on I-5 for a few miles south to head up to Crater Lake. That's about when the clouds moved in and it got colder and colder. Of course we were climbing in elevation too. Crater Lake Lodge is over 7,000 feet. A little fine mist of rain started to come down too, but not enough to put on the rain gear. As the temperature dropped though the 40's to about 42, the misty rain turned to ICE PELLETS!! Even with the heated jacket on full, it was starting to get chilly.

We made it to the Park entrance station. (Remember the park ranger back at the little Saguaro NP in Tucson?) This time I was prepared with my photo ID (diver's license) in my jacket pocket with my annual national park pass. I thought, in any case, I would test the "system". As I handed my National Park pass to the Park Ranger I asked him "Do you need to see my photo ID too?". He immediately said "No that is not necessary, you can go on through"!! (OK, I was happy and again I am not going to say anything else about this!! hehe).

We finally made it to the top of the crater without freezing to death!! Does Bill look COLD in this picture? He should and does, it was only about 40 degrees here with SNOW laying all over the place!! But hey, he still has a smile on his face! I am sure he was just thinking of the 112 degree day we had had in New Mexico and Arizona just a few days ago.

Here we were parked in front of the lodge unloading our motorcycles for the night's stay.

This was the view from the window in our room for the night. Unbelievable view!

We didn't walk around much outside since we were so cold. There were several fireplaces going in the lodge and we both headed for one to warm up to. This was one big fireplace and it felt good too!

Now that we had our "outside" warmed up, it was time to warm up our "inside"!! hehe. What better for Bill and I upon our arrival than "The Old Man's Hot Chocolate". Now that really tasted good and warmed us up in more ways than one!!! hehe, hehe, hehe!

Only problem was there wasn't enough of it in the glass!! It definitely made you want more.

After getting unpacked and warmed up, I headed outside to explore and takes some pics. It was a picture taking paradise both around and of the lake. Lots of snow on the ground and as the evening went on, new snow began to fall. It ended up just being flurries and the temps had fallen into the mid 30's. The forecast overnight was to be in the 20's!!!

The drifts of snow were around 8-10 feet in places. There are years that the snow never totally melts at Crater Lake over the year.

Bill just couldn't get away from that fireplace and he really had a nice time reading a book in the lodge. (Hey, it don't get any better than this, now does it Bill?)

Another cozy fireplace.

Marty got there around 5:30 pm. I mentioned before that Marty was also from Richmond, VA and on the USA4CT solo. He started out about a week before Bill and I and he had already finished the tour and was hitting some places on the way back. Marty also retired a few years ago from Dominion Virginia Power, like Bill and I. Here was Marty's bike (The Big Blue Pig) parked out front of the lodge as he was unloading.

Bill, Marty and I had a great dinner together this evening. Great conversation and company. We shared stories about our USA4CT as well as a few "old" work stories!! hehe

Now for a few pics of the area of Crater Lake. This was a "cool" place. Something to think you are standing on the rim of a volcano that erupted around 7,700 years ago. They think it was around 12,000 feet high prior to the eruption, so about 5,000 feet of the top of the mountain is "gone" or collapsed into the crater which created the area of the lake. It is also around 6 miles across the crater.

This is the bluest water I have ever seen. It was constantly changing as the sun would change on the lake.

I think the water was bluer than the sky! (Flag at the Visitor Center)

Here is when it was SNOWING!!!

It was a photographer's paradise as the view constantly changed with the clouds/sun and as you moved. There was a rim walk for about 1 mile near the lodge.

Again, no AC today, just HEAT in the room!! I planned to get up in the morning near sunrise to see the sun come up and get a few pics!