Family Vacation 2017: Crater Lake Edition

Our final leg of the vacation had finally arrived. None of us wanted it to end, but to be honest I was exhausted and kind of felt like I needed a vacation to recover from the vacation. (First world problems).

We left the Oregon Caves National Monument and headed toward Crater Lake. Unfortunately, a forest fire blocked our path and lengthened our drive quite a bit. We arrived at Crater Lake National Park later than we had hoped, but we were still able to get in some stunning views.

The boys’ favorite part of our time that afternoon, though, was not looking at the lake. They were thrilled to find snow still on the ground. As soon as we were out of the car they were jumping around asking to go in the snow. We made them at least look at the lake first. Then we headed across the road for their first snowball fight in 80 degree weather!

We stayed the night in the Mazama Cabins. They were rustic, and not as clean as I would have hoped, but it was perfect for what we needed. We woke up on our last morning and ate breakfast at the Crater Lake Lodge. Elias was thrilled because he ordered off the adult menu for the first time.

After breakfast we took a few more looks at the lake at a few different viewpoints.

The last time Nathan and I were at Crater Lake was 2007. We were married barely over a year and had no kids. We had to take a selfie to remember the good old days when life was so relaxed and carefree, but definitely not as exciting. 10 years later we’re still in love.

We knew it was time to start the journey home when the boys became more interested in watching an ant on the stone wall rather than looking at the lake.

The drive home was long, and it was made even longer by horrible traffic. We survived it, though, and were happy to have made so many good memories.

The day after we got home I put the boys to work washing the van. It got filthy on all those unpaved roads!