Crater Lake: The Story of Its Origin

WE have good reason to be grateful to both Canada and the United States for their contributions to peace as well as to war. Among their most precious gifts are the national parks of the glorious West, which they have consecrated for all future time to the service of humanity. The larger examples, such as Jasper, Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon, harbour men and bears on terms reminiscent of the Garden of Eden. The park of Crater Lake, Oregon, covering roughly 300 square miles, of which a tenth is submerged, is too small to share in this particular distinction ; but the blue of its lake and the gay tints of the surrounding cliffs lead some of its devotees to acclaim it as the most beautiful place in the world. Perhaps these enthusiasts have never visited that other park which contains Lake Louise in Alberta ; perhaps they say 'most beautiful' when they really mean 'most fascinating'. Be this as it may, all who have had the privilege of visiting Crater Lake admit its rare loveliness, combined with an intellectual stimulus of quite exceptional quality. It is scarcely possible to stand on the rim of the crater and avoid asking the question: How did it happen?