Crater Lake National Park

Crater Lake National Park in southern Oregon near the crest of the volcanic Cascade Range was established in 1902. With a maximum depth of 1,932 feet, Crater Lake is the deepest U.S. lake. Its cold, intensely blue waters occupy the central vent of an extinct, collapsed volcano, Mount Mazama, formerly a 12,000-foot peak that erupted over 6,000 years ago and, like Mount Saint Helen's, largely destroyed itself in the process. The park's 183,224 acres are home to red fox, badger, coyote, bobcat, and mountain lion, and are hunting grounds for the bald eagle, golden eagle, and the endangered peregrine falcon.