MI Road Trip: Starting Michigan with a Beer!

In October, Jon and I took a week off of work and spent 8 full days in Michigan. The trip was dual purpose; a family visit primarily, but we were also able to take a couple of days touring part of the northern area of Michigan’s mitten – the most northern part that isn’t the Upper Peninsula.

Jon and I arrived in Michigan on a red eye flight on Saturday morning. We were both a bit bleary eyed when we wandered into the car rental place that morning, and more than a little confused when the agent told us that he didn’t see our reservation. It took me a minute, but then I realized my mistake (and accidentally let a curse word pop out as I was marveling at my stupidity). We had booked our flight to depart from Seattle on October 3^rd, so I booked the rental car for an October 3^rd pickup. What I hadn’t paid attention to was the fact that since it was a red eye, we wouldn’t arrive until October 4^th. Ooops!

Fortunately, there were still cars available, and he didn’t even charge us for the extra day.   Alamo rocks! We just had to pick a car. Jon was kind of interested in trying a Prius, but that gave me flashbacks to all my government travel, so thankfully I was able to talk him out of it (I think the backup beeper helped him realize how annoying Prius’ are).

Soon we were on our way to a Cracker Barrel breakfast to load up on coffee. After breakfast though, even the coffee couldn’t keep us awake and we ended up settling down for an hour long nap in the car (not while driving). This red eye was much more difficult than the one we took in 2012 – I guess we are getting older!

Jon had big dreams of stopping in Ann Arbor to check out the city, and to stop at a record store, but in the end neither of us had the energy for it.

So instead, after driving about 90 minutes, a tired, un-showered and slightly groggy couple stumbled into the Dark Horse Brewery in Marshall, Michigan (population about 7,000) about 2:30, hoping to get a bite to eat and a brew. The joint was jumping! We were able to snag the last open table – a table for 6 near the door. We ordered our beers and an order of nachos. My beer, the Raspberry Ale, didn’t exactly hit the spot, which was kind of surprising since that is normally exactly the type of beer I would like.  It just didn’t come together on the palate. Jon’s beers were amazing. He had two while we were there; a Double Crooked Tree IPA and then the 4 Elf Winter Warmer.

I especially liked the Winter Warmer, with a great balance of spice on a dark winter ale. YUM! And the nachos, although simple, were sinfully good. Chunks of chicken, tomatoes, olives, shredded lettuce and pepperoncinis, smothered with that fake Velveeta cheese on tortilla chips. Jon prefers a bit more upscale nachos, but I dug right in and was happy with our choice.

Terrible picture, great nachos!

If you are a regular, you can get into their mug club, with handmade ceramic mugs hung all over the ceiling for loyal customers.  I loved the look!

Mugs hang from every inch of ceiling space

After we had been at Dark Horse a little while, we invited a couple who was waiting for a table to sit down and join us. It turned out that they were from Grand Rapids, down for an afternoon beer tour of Dark Horse. They had rave reviews about the tour, offered at noon on Saturdays – next time Jon and I are in Michigan, hopefully we will be able to check it out. They explained to us that Dark Horse is also featured on a reality show on the History Channel (I’m not sure what is historical about a relatively new brewpub but…) about life in a brewpub. We hadn’t heard of it, but my mom had (she knows all sorts of random trivia). We still haven’t seen the show.

Finally we pulled ourselves away, bought some bottled beer to go, and took our leave of Dark Horse. We will certainly be back again.  Please promise me that if you visit, you will check out the crazy toilet in the ladies’ room!  That thing had a panel on the side with all sorts of buttons!  I’m really not sure what it did!

I have no idea what “features” this toilet offers

Have you had Dark Horse beer?  Have you seen the show?

Did Attila the Hun like hard apple cider?

A new cidery!  Jon and I stopped by my favorite antique store and fruit market on our way home from a weekend trip a couple of weekends ago.  I found an intriguing hard cider in the cooler, and took a bottle home with me.  The Attila “Scourge of God” Hard Apple Cider is brewed in Ellensburg, WA.  They are a brand new producer, and their first year’s production of 5,515 bottles is already sold out.  Luckily, their next release is due out in February!

This cider is made using fresh, Washington apples; perhaps I am biased but I think Washington apples are the best.  It is a light straw color, with a light effervescence.  It has a very dry, apple flavor, with only the faintest hint of sweetness.  It is a wonderful cider!  In fact, it was so good, I regretted offering Jon a taste, because then he wanted some of mine…

Attila “Scourge of God” Hard Cider

I have no idea how it got its name, but I’m sure it is a good story, and I’m positive that Attila the Hun wouldn’t have turned down a glass of this!  At least for now it appears their distribution is central Washington, the greater Puget Sound, and Portland, Oregon.  But Attila is getting rave reviews, so perhaps you will be able to find it in a larger market soon.  If you see it, be sure to grab a bottle – or a case!

 

2013 Mer Soleil Silver Unoaked Chardonnay

Every now and again, I buy a bottle for the label.  Or in this case, for the bottle.  You know you do it too; that irresistible whimsical label, or the one that is funny or beautiful or reminds you of that time…  Or something you have never seen before.  Like this bottle – a gray ceramic bottle meant to remind one of the concrete tanks the wine is aged in.

The bottle was on sale – very reasonably priced if I remember correctly.  Somewhere in the $10-$11 dollar range.  In looking online, it appears that this wine usually retails in the $25-$30 range.  I brought it home and it has been sitting waiting since December.

2013 Mer Soleil Silver Unoaked Chardonnay

Last night Jon was rooting around for an everyday drinking wine and popped this one open.  It has a distinct metal cap stuck into a cork, so we had to figure out how to deal with that before uncorking the wine.  We smelled the bottle – it was an interesting clay and tropical white wine smell.  Not unpleasant, but unusual.  We poured.  The wine was a deep, buttery yellow.  We smelled again – a light butter with the same tropical aroma.  Interesting that an unoaked chardonnay smells so buttery.

We tasted.  Butter.  And funky.  No tropical taste here.  UGH!  I am usually fairly forgiving, but this wine was terrible.  Maybe it was corked, but it didn’t really taste flawed.  It certainly didn’t taste like an unoaked chardonnay though – there was too much butter and oak.  It was… awful.  So awful that neither of us drank more than a couple of sips.

Even though this wine was a dud, I still have a nice bottle to save.

Have you ever had a really awful wine? 

The Applegate Valley Wine

After our visit to Jacksonville, Oregon, we decided to check out a couple of wineries!  The Applegate Valley is one of the most overlooked wine regions in the country, with outstanding wines and a quiet, relaxed atmosphere.  Our first winery stop was Wooldridge Creek Winery. We pulled in to find an amazing covered seating area with cushioned patio furniture, a classy yet inviting tasting room with several books available to read, and another outdoor patio with tables and chairs. Jon’s dad wasn’t interested in wine tasting so he plopped down outside in the shade to read his book.

The winery named after the Wooldridge family who first settled on the property in the 1850s – this isn’t the same family that owns the property and the winery now though.  The first grapevines at Wooldridge Creek were planted in the 1970s; it has now expanded to 56 acres planted in twelve varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Viognier, Sangiovese, Zinfandel, Malbec, Petit Verdot and Tempranillo.  However, until 2002, the owners sold all their fruit to other wineries; at that point they met and partnered with a wine-making couple to start the winery.

We began our tasting in the tasting room, but soon the draw of the warm sunshine was too much. Our server was very gracious about loading up our tasting on a tray with mini decanters and tasting information for each wine. As I think back on it now (on a gray, rainy day in frigid January), I wish I were back there soaking up the warm rays of the sun!

Wooldridge Creek Winery

The wine was delicious – I did find that I liked the reds more than the whites though.  The French oak aged Chardonnay was a hit with Jon, but a little too oaked for my taste – good for a taste but too much for a whole glass. There was a Viognier that was quite enjoyable – which was a bit unusual because I don’t typically like many Viogniers. Jon’s mom really enjoyed that one. The reds were wonderful – balanced and approachable while still having lots of structure.  We tasted Merlot, Pinot Noir and Malbec.

After Wooldridge, we visited Troon Winery. Jon and I had been there before, and Jon had wanted to go back. We wanted to be outside again, so we shuttled back and forth between the tasting room and the seating area outside. That was a little bit awkward, but it was to be expected as the server had her hands full with other customers. She did tell us a bit about each wine when we came in to get our sample, but it seemed a bit more impersonal than our visit in 2011.

Troon Winery from our covered seating

That said, Troon’s wine is excellent – not a bad one in the bunch. Ironically, when we visited in 2011 the Druid’s Fluid red blend was my least favorite wine, but it is the biggest seller for the winery. This year, they didn’t have Druid’s Fluid on the tasting menu, so I don’t know if I would have liked it more now.  We ended up getting several wines to bring home with us.  For some reason though, I always forget that Troon now has a tasting room in the Willamette Valley, so we will have to stop by there sometime when we are down that way.

After our two tasting room visits, we wrapped up our day and headed back to the rental house to enjoy one last quiet evening on the river before heading home.  We swam in the pool, read books, watched the Canada Geese flying overhead to their night roosts, and heard the hum of the jet boats as they took tourists back home after the dinner tour (I so want to take that jet boat tour one day!).

Canada Geese flying home for the night

We had to be up before dawn in the morning, because Jon had misunderstood what days he was supposed to get off from work.  I had planned for us to spend a leisurely day Tuesday driving home and then go back to work Wednesday, but Jon thought we were coming home on Monday.  He had scheduled himself to work at 2 pm on Tuesday, expecting that he would have a quiet morning at home to sleep in and get some things done.  Obviously that wasn’t going to happen!  Considering that the drive home (without traffic) is 8 hours, we set the alarm for 3 am to get home in time.

We were on the road at 3:17 am! It’s not often that I watch a summer sunrise from the road, but I caught this one. Our early morning travel all worked out in the end though, as we made it home with enough time to get some lunch and essentials at the grocery store before Jon had to go to work.  And I had the whole afternoon to take a leisurely nap, unpack and relax for going back to work on Wednesday. It was a nice end to a great long weekend…

 

A Stop in Historic Jacksonville

It was the third day of our Southern Oregon long weekend and we were headed to Jacksonville!  Jacksonville, Oregon is a historic town just 5 miles outside of Medford.  It experienced a huge boom in 1851 and 1852 when gold was discovered there, and the town became the principal financial center for Southern Oregon at the time.  However, the gold dried up, and so did the town, especially after the railroad passed it by in 1884.  It remained the county seat until 1927, but the economy of the town drastically declined.  As a result of the decline, progress bypassed Jacksonville and a large number of the commercial and residential buildings were left intact.

The Old Drug Store

Now the large number of historic buildings are the stars of the town, drawing tourists to the quiet downtown.  The main street is lined with shops, selling a variety of art, local clothing and handmade jewelry, and fair trade products.  Jon and I visited in 2011, and loved the relaxed little town so much that we couldn’t wait to come back.

A Historic Saloon turned Coffee Shop

We had lunch at the Bella Union – a restaurant in a historic building downtown.  The Bella Union began as a restaurant and saloon in 1864, and operated until it burned on April 14, 1874.  After that it was home to many businesses; a machine shop, saddle shop, saloon, deli and finally a restaurant and saloon once again.  The present restaurant has been in business since 1988.

The outdoor patio at the Bella Union Restaurant

I had a turkey cranberry sandwich and vegetable soup; Jon had steamed clams and salad.  Both were delicious.  We sat outside on the patio in the warm shade and enjoyed a relaxed conversation with Jon’s parents.  After lunch, we shopped a bit, and then headed off for our next adventure – wine tasting!

The Treveri Cellars Sparkling Syrah Brut

Jon and I took advantage of the long weekend and took a brief trip over the mountains to Yakima.  We wanted to visit a few wineries and do some relaxing with our precious days off together.  One of the wineries I was excited about visiting was Treveri Cellars, one of Washington’s few sparkling wine producers.

But when we got there – they were closed for maintenance!  There had been no mention about this closure on their website, which was pretty disappointing.  It shouldn’t be that hard to give customers a heads up!  Big fail…

So instead of tasting the Treveri lineup, we just tasted one bottle that we managed to find in a wine shop on the way out of town.  The Treveri Cellars Sparkling Syrah Brut.  This wine is a non-vintage wine; truly a red sparkling wine, rather than a brut rosé.  It has a very light effervescence; the bubbles are much less pronounced than other sparkling wines.

On the palate, there are flavors of dark berries, along with a dry, yeasty tartness that is so important to a sparkling wine.  It is a unique wine that really came together well.  I really enjoyed it.  I just wish I had the opportunity to try their other wines!

Book Review: The 19th Wife

I’m not usually that into murder mysteries.  But when a novel is a cross between a murder mystery and historical fiction?  And when you add in one of the most controversial religious doctrines in American history?  I’m in!  Plus, someone several years ago had recommended The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff, and I was lucky enough to find it at the library book sale.

This novel starts out by telling the story of Jordan Scott, a young man who became a “lost boy” several years before; kicked out of a Fundamentalist Mormon closed community for the minor (and false) charge of holding hands with a girl.  He finds out that his mother, who was forced to cut off contact when he was booted from the community, has been charged with the murder of his father, and is in jail awaiting trial.  He re-establishes contact with her, even though he is still angry and hurt about being abandoned, in order to find the truth.

The 19th Wife, by David Ebershoff

The story is interwoven with the story of Ann Eliza Young, one of the true life wives of Brigham Young; the one who renounced her faith and fled the community, at the same time filing for divorce from her husband.  She wrote a book about her experience, and this novel includes excerpts from Mrs. Young’s book, detailing her experiences within the Mormon church, as a plural wife, and her apostasy and attempt to get the U.S. Government to ban polygamy.

While Ann Eliza Young was a real person, and did write a book, it is unclear whether the excerpts in this novel are taken from Young’s book or another piece of fiction.  It probably doesn’t matter; they are well written and believable.  Of course, Ebershoff fills in the gaps of Ann Eliza’s life as well with an intriguing story about how she ultimately ended up as one of Brigham Young’s 55 wives.

As the two stories alternate, suspense builds as Jordan confronts the still raw emotions he feels after being cast out, and as he gets himself into increasingly dangerous situations as he takes the law into his own hands and tries to solve the mystery of who really murdered his father.  Although fiction, the scare tactics used by the men of the closed community to get Jordan to leave well enough alone, well, those are real.

Although fiction, this novel does a great job of shedding light on a religious community that is all too real, and that uses its power to perpetuate a system of subjugating its women and children to the demands of a few powerful men.  It is heartbreaking to reflect on the hopeless lives these women lead, entirely at the mercy of their Prophet.  It is a real page turner – although a long book (544 pages), it kept me captivated from beginning to end.

To be honest, I would have loved the book even if it didn’t have the murder mystery plot line.  I thought the historical fiction pieces of the novel were just that powerful.  But the murder did provide an interesting bit of intrigue and a tie in to present day.  Now that I’ve finished The 19th Wife, I might have to read Ann Eliza Young’s book too!

Have you read The 19th Wife?  What did you think of it?

 

A Boat Tour of Crater Lake

There are only five boats permitted on Crater Lake – three tour boats and two research vessels.  And I got to spend two hours on one!

The second full day of our Southern Oregon long weekend was dedicated to a trip to Crater Lake, and the boat tour!  We left first thing in the morning (but not too early, because it was our vacation) for the two hour drive to the lake from our vacation home in Grants Pass, Oregon.

We stopped to check out the upper Rogue River for a few minutes, walking along the river and snapping some photos.  But we couldn’t stay long because we needed to make it up to the lake in time for our tour!

We got to the Cleetwood Cove Trail parking area, and then had to find parking along the road because the parking lot was full!  We checked in at the kiosk (you are required to check in and pick up your tickets before you hike down) and then started down the 1.1 mile trail to the lake.  The trail isn’t too steep, because there are a lot of switchbacks, but there are sections that have lots of loose gravel.  A couple of times my feet slipped on the loose gravel, even though I was wearing my Chaco sandals that have a good sole.

But soon enough, we were down at the bottom, where we checked in again (checking in was quite a theme on this tour…).  We had about 20 minutes to relax at the bottom, eat some snacks, and dip my feet in the water before the boat tour started.  And boy was that water cold!  We got all settled in on the boat and set off for our two hour tour (go to the bathroom before you get on the boat people – there’s no peeing in the lake!).

Our ranger started us off by telling us about the history of Crater Lake, beginning with the Native American oral history that I told you about in my last post.  Then he talked about William Gladstone Steel, and how his efforts are one of the main reasons Crater Lake is a National Park.  After the history talk, the Ranger discussed the geology about how Crater Lake was formed, and the formations that exist on the edges of the caldera and within the lake itself.

The Devil’s Backbone is a dike that was created by lava as it pushed up and filled cracks.  The “backbone” emerged as the softer rock around it is eroded away.  Devil’s Backbone ranges in width from 23 feet to about 50 feet and is the only backbone that goes all the way from the water’s edge to the top of the caldera.

Devil’s Backbone – This shows how much it sticks up!

Wizard Island is a cinder cone that began to form while the caldera was filling with water.  The top 763 feet of the 2500 foot cinder cone are visible above the surface of the lake.  Aerial photos show where volcanic activity is apparent at the top of the cone.  Depending on which tour you choose, you can get dropped off on Wizard Island and spend some time hiking there.

Wizard Island – the cinder cone shows well on the left, but you can’t see the crater at the top from the boat.

The Phantom Ship is an island created by the remains of lava flow.  It is about 500 feet long with a maximum width of 200 feet; the dramatic spires that give The Phantom Ship its name tower about 170 feet above the surface of the lake.  Despite not having much soil, trees make their home there, along with other shrubs.  The Phantom Ship is probably Crater Lake’s most famous landmark.

Mergansers! Swimming around the Phantom Ship

The Phantom Ship – Sorry about the people standing in the pic; I was told pushing them in the water was frowned upon.

The Pumice Castle is an outcropping of fragmental pumice along the wall of the caldera.  It is striking because of its bright orange color; it sharply contrasts with the gray of the rock around it.  It is another example of how erosion has revealed geologic features at Crater Lake.

The Pumice Castle – Jon loved this because it is orange.

The Old Man is a Mountain Hemlock trunk that has been floating upright in the lake for more than 100 years.  It is pushed to different areas of the lake by the wind and lake currents, but I don’t think they know why the Old Man bobs along in his upright position.

The Old Man of Crater Lake – a Mountain Hemlock that has been bobbing along upright for over 100 years.

 

The tour also explained the water’s clarity, which I discussed in my previous post, and the flora and fauna of the lake.  The Ranger told us that other than ground squirrels, wildlife was not frequently seen near the surface of the lake, because the loose scree made it difficult to travel down the edges of the caldera.  Simply put, the animals aren’t that crazy.

William Gladstone Steel began stocking the lake with fish as early as 1888 and the stocking continued until 1941.  Two species were able to acclimate to the lake and begin reproducing naturally; Kokanee Salmon and Rainbow Trout.  Both of these species are abundant in the lake today.

You can fish to your heart’s content during the season, but there are no organic baits or lures allowed.  And fishing in the Park’s many creeks is prohibited.  The endangered Bull Trout makes its home in those waters, and they are trying to help it make a comeback.

After our two hour tour on the lake, the boat finally motored back to Cleetwood Cove and we were back on dry land.  We still had to make the 1.1 mile hike back up to the rim of the caldera, but it went more quickly than I expected.  Of course, Jon couldn’t wait for us slowskies (me and Jon’s parents), so he powered up to the top and waited for us there.

This is a view of the Phantom Ship from the Cleetwood Cove Trail – not as much detail, but no people in the photo either!

We drove over to the concession area, got a snack, and spent some time perusing the gift shop before heading towards home.  A great day – I had a fabulous time on the boat tour and would highly recommend it!

Would you want to take the Crater Lake Boat Tour?

Two Good Cabs

I’m not a huge fan of Cabernet Sauvignon, particularly not Washington made Cab.  I too often find that drinking some of those big, bold Washington Cabs is like chewing on a hunk of wood.  Dry oak.  But I have had a couple recently that have surprised me, in a good way.

2010 La Playa Claret

This is a big wine, and while it isn’t predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon, it still has quite a bit of Cab.  The blend is 41% Petit Verdot, 37% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Cabernet Franc and 4% Carmenere. It is a big tannic wine, but it isn’t too dry though – it has a nice balance.  On the nose, there is the strong scent of tobacco.  On the palate, it has flavors of stewed plums and leather.  It was harvested by hand and aged for 8 months in French and American oak.

This wine really reminded me that living in Chile was the main reason I started loving wine.  And I do love Chilean wine!  I really should drink a lot more of it.

2011 Revelry Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Jon poured me a glass of this wine when he couldn’t offer me any more La Playa, because…. you guessed it… he drank it all.  Revelry is a Walla Walla winery, sourcing their fruit from several areas in the Columbia Valley.  Although they are a fairly new winery, with their first vintage in 2005, they have managed to secure fruit from several elite vineyards, including Sagemoor Vineyard, and vineyards on Red Mountain and the Horse Heaven Hills.

On the nose, I got lots of blackberry, and on the palate, it had medium tannins and wasn’t super dry.  It was a fruity Cab, almost slightly jammy, but in a wonderful balanced kind of way.  Not a fruit bomb by any means, but certainly more fruit than your typical overly oaked Washington Cab.  I loved it!  The grapes for this 100% Cabernet Sauvignon came from various vineyards, including Red Mountain, The Wahluke Slope, Horse Heaven Hills, and the Walla Walla Valley.  It spent 12-16 months in the 100% French Oak barrels, with 30% being new French Oak.

Jon and I both loved these two wines, which is unusual because we tend to go for something very different in a big, red wine.  If you have had either one, let me know what you think!

Crater Lake History

Did you know what the deepest lake in the United States is?  Crater Lake!  It is also the ninth deepest lake in the world, and contains some of the world’s clearest waters.  And we were lucky enough to visit again in August!

Crater Lake National Park was the fifth National Park to be named, on May 22, 1902, by Congress and Theodore Roosevelt.  Although it was one of the earliest parks, that was thanks to the perseverance of William Gladstone Steel, who had been lobbying Congress to create the park since 1870!

Steel first learned about Crater Lake in1870 and was immediately enthralled, but it took another 15 years before he had the chance to visit.  He participated in many of the scientific experiments in the 1880s that established Crater Lake as the deepest in the U.S., and documented its exceptional clarity.  Steel also was integral to the building on Crater Lake Lodge, which was completed in 1915, and the Rim Drive, which is a 33 mile drive around the entire rim of the lake, which was completed in 1918.

Of course, the Native Americans in the area, belonging to the Klamath tribe, have known about Crater Lake for thousands of years.  In fact, their oral tradition includes stories of the eruption that blew the top off of Mount Mazama 7,700 years ago, and created Crater Lake in the caldera that was formed.  According to their tradition, two Chiefs, Llao, of the Below World, and Skell, of the Above World fought each other in a battle.

Crater Lake from the Cleetwood Cove Trail

Llao had visited the top of Mount Mazama, and on one visit, had seen Loha, the daughter of a Klamath Chief.  When she rejected him because he was ugly (aren’t these stories always about unrequited love?) Llao rained fire onto the Klamath people.  They appealed to Skell for help, and that’s when the trouble really got going.

After a fierce battle, Skell defeated Llao and drove him back into the underworld, and covered the hole with the top of Mount Mazama, and then to ensure he wouldn’t get out again, covered it with a dark pit of water that still exists today.

Gold prospectors “discovered” the lake while out searching for gold in 1853.  However, they didn’t find any gold there, so the find wasn’t all that momentous.  But eventually, Crater Lake attracted enough attention that the media wrote about it, and William Gladstone Steel began his quest to get Crater Lake designated as a National Park.

I have written about Crater Lake before; it is the one place (at least so far) where I have felt so overcome by a sense of peace and tranquility even when surrounded by people.  It just has that effect on me.  There are many peaceful places, but peace within a crowd of people is scarce.  Surprisingly, Crater Lake isn’t a hugely visited park; annual attendance in 2012 was 447,251.  I have such a hard time understanding why more people don’t want to go!

Part of this low attendance is because of the fact that snow covers the area for a full eight months of the year; the park is open all year but has limited accessibility outside of the June to early October summer window.  Only about 100,000 people visit outside of the summer season.  You have to be pretty determined to visit in the winter; the record year for snow came in 1950, with 903 inches of snow!

And the tranquility I felt when gazing at the lake?  I think that’s in part due to the sapphire blue color of the lake itself.  The stunning blue is caused by its depth, and the fact that the water is so clear.

Crater Lake from the Boat Tour

A secchi disk (an 8″ black and white disk that is dropped to measure clarity) was still visible at 139 feet below the surface of the lake!  The water is so clear because there are no rivers or streams pouring sediment into the lake.  The only water coming in is rain and snow melt.  And the porous volcanic soil allows the snow melt to run down into the lake without taking much sediment with it.

I was so excited that we got to visit again, and this time, we were going to take the boat tour around the lake!

Have you been to Crater Lake?  Did you do the boat tour?