20 



RECREA TION. 



engulfed in the great cavern. Thus more 

 than 6,000 feet of the top of the mountain 

 disappeared, leaving a truncated cone a lit- 

 tle more than 8,000 feet high and about 6 

 miles in diameter at the top. In the top of 

 this truncated cone is the great pit, 4,000 

 feet deep and just half filled with water, as 

 already mentioned. 



The lake has practically no shores, for the 

 lava wall which hems it in rises almost ver- 

 tically, not only from the water's edge but 

 from far beneath its surface. This wall is 

 500 to 2,000 feet in height, above the lake, 

 and so nearly vertical that there are but 2 

 or 3 places where it is possible to descend 

 to the water. 



In the lake are 2 islands. One of these 

 is called the Phantom Ship. It is a small, 

 rocky islet, in the Southeast part of the 

 lake, and resembles, in a wonderful manner, 

 a ship with masts and spars. In clear sun- 

 light it is distinctly seen, while at other 

 times it appears but dimly, or not at all. 

 The other island is in the Western part of 

 the lake and is known as Wizard island. It 

 is 2 miles from the foot of the trail, by 

 which the water is reached from the rim 

 above, and is a cinder cone of remarkably 

 fresh appearance. It is quite symmetrical 

 and rises with a steep slope, on all sides, to 

 a height of 845 feet above the surface of the 

 lake. In its top is a bowl-shaped crater 

 80 feet deep, on the South half of which lies 

 a bank of snow that the summer sun never 

 entirely melts. Between Wizard island and 

 the South shore is another cone which rises 

 from the bottom of the lake to within 93 

 feet of the surface of the water. 



Crater lake has neither inlet nor outlet, 

 so far as known. The precipitation in that 

 region is believed to be somewhat greater 

 than the evaporation, and it is not unlikely 

 that there is a subterranean outlet. 



The water is pure and sweet and of re- 

 markable clearness. An ordinary dinner 

 plate, let down to a depth of 92 feet, could 

 be easily seen. 



When the surface is not disturbed the re- 

 flection or mirror of the surrounding wall, 

 and of Wizard island, is one of fascinating 

 beauty. 



Though remarkably clear, the water of 

 Crater lake is the most wonderful blue — 

 the bluest blue I have ever seen. It is doubt- 

 ful if there is anywhere else in the world a 

 lake so marvellously beautiful in color ef- 



fect. In the deep parts the blue is richer 

 than the bluest indigo. Where the water is 

 less deep, and in the changing lights and 

 shadows of the clouds, the colors change 

 from ultramarine through cobalt and azure 

 blue, to smalt blue and hyacinth, and even 

 to royal purple, violet and mauve. So won- 

 derfully and strangely beautiful are these 

 colors that one never tires of watching and 

 studying them. 



Temperature observations, made by Pro- 

 fessor U. O. Cox and me, at the lake, proved 

 extremely interesting. On August 22 the 

 temperature of the surface, near the center 

 of the lake, at 1 p.m., was 61 ° Fahr. At a 

 depth of 555 feet it was 39 ; at 1,040 feet it 

 was 41 °, and at 1,623 feet (which was at the 

 bottom, in that place) it was 46 . From 

 this it appears that the line of greatest cold 

 is neither at the surface nor at the bottom; 

 but at some intermediate depth, and the 

 conclusion is almost irresistible that the 

 lava forming the bottom of the lake has not 

 yet entirely cooled, but that it continues 

 to give off heat to the water. These ob- 

 servations are of unusual interest, but must 

 be repeated before they should be accepted 

 as final. 



Crater lake, of course, contains no fishes; 

 lakes without inlets or outlets seldom or 

 never do; for fishes naturally get into one 

 body of water only by swimming to it from 

 some other body of water with which it is 

 connected. Breaks in water continuity, or 

 considerable falls, are absolute barriers be- 

 yond which fishes can not go. So it is with 

 Crater lake. Though the water is suitable, 

 and was found by us to contain an abundant 

 supply of excellent fish-food, consisting 

 chiefly of small crustaceans and insect 

 larvae, there are no fishes to feed upon 

 them. 



The gratifying success which has attended 

 the efforts of the U. S. Fish Commission 

 in stocking barren waters elsewhere, not- 

 ably Lewis and Shoshone lakes, in the Yel- 

 lowstone National Park, gives good rea- 

 son for believing that similar results will 

 follow the stocking of Crater lake with 

 trout. 



Among the places in the United States 

 of greatest scenic and scientific interest I 

 would name the Yellowstone National 

 Park, the Grand canyon. Crater lake, and 

 Yosemite; and Crater lake is not the least 

 of these. 



The joy the merry urchin shows — 

 On Christmas morn — in clover, 



Can't touch the bliss his parent knows 

 At night, when all is over. 



