Evidence of Crater Lake

This picture taken of Crater Lake from Rim Village just North of the Rim Village Cafe and Gift Shop in Oregon.  One can barely see Wizard Island to the left of the photo.  Crater Lake was once one of the great volcanoes, Mount Mazama, of the Cascade Range of Volcanoes.  Mount Mazama for half a million years produced  massive eruptions with quiet periods to build the Mountain to over 12,000 feet.  About 7,700 years ago a climatic eruption occurred spewing ash over eight States and three Canadian Provinces.  Just to give one an idea of how much ash, it was 150 times that of Mount St Helens of the 1980 time frame.  The Mount Mazama magma chamber was emptied and the volcano collapsed, leaving a huge bowl-shaped caldera.  Through Wizard Island, a volcano in a volcano, and time the caldera floor sealed allowing water from springs, snow, and rain to fill the caldera to the present lake surface elevation of 6,173 feet above sea level.  The maximum lake depth is 1943 feet, making it the deepest lake in the United States and seventh deepest in the world.  This is good stuff folks!  I only wish that the weather would have cooperated a bit more.