With an average of 500″ of snowfall annually, this is indeed one of the snowiest places in the lower 48.
My fortress. By mid February the walls hid most of the balcony.
When I arrived on December 14th, there was 24″ of snow on the ground at the Visitor Center which is about 600′ below Rim Village. When I left on February 20th there was 114″ (9.5 feet). During my tenure, the most received in 24 hours was 19.7″ and 5.5 feet over a one-week period.
The road to Rim Village was closed for 19 days in January after being overwhelmed by storms.
I was glad I’d brought my umbrella for walking to work as most days there were snow flurries or blowing snow, freezing rain and even rain for a few days. The goggles came in handy when I was snowshoeing during blizzard conditions. I’ll be adding a post about essential gear, eats, etc.
This is our walk to work, sometimes it’s plowed most often not. I wore traction devices on my shoes nearly daily as there tended to be an icy base.
Digging out my car continued to be a mostly negative experience. This was possibly the worst day. The snow was piled on my roof way taller than me. It took me 30 minutes to reach my car as shown in the 3rd photo, and at least two hours to free my car from her snowy casket. I was pretty sure I’d need to resign my position after flaring up my carpal tunnel but thankfully I had a few days to recover.
This is Steel Visitor Center where I should be working but it’s been closed since 2022 for a structural remodel. It was slated to open in November, then December, then February . . .
This is the administration building where I worked, since the visitor center was closed. My office was on the first floor with all windows covered by snow so it felt like I was in a cave. It was dark even with the lights on. The pile of snow in the middle is indicative of snow depth, which was about 8 feet at this point.
Mother nature was stingy when it came to bringing out the orange orb.
Weather prevented me from getting out as often as I would have liked with only few days without snowfall. Snow conditions varied and weren’t always the best for snowshoeing but regardless I was out on storm-free days. During my time here I snowshoed 29 days. My new boots and snowshoes were amazing!
January 14th brought blue skies with 2-3 feet of powder topped with a 1″ crust. I broke trail on East Rim Drive. After 8 days of continuous snow, the sun decided to make an appearance. With the park roads still closed, thus no public access, it was one of those days were the park was mine, shared only with snow plows.
I was gifted another nice day on January 15th when I went out to explore Raven Trail, a ski/snowshoe route. The snow was so deep and heavy I was waddling about but happy to enjoy the sun.
When I finished showshoeing for the day, I found a wonderful spot of sun. Thankfully I’d cleared my car the previous day so I could watch others suffering the same fait, albeit being paid for it.
January 19th found me back on East Rim Drive breaking trail, and finding views of Union Peak.
Gray Jays have adapted to living here in the winter. They collect seeds and insects during the summer and glue them to tree trunks with their saliva for winter eats. Much like chipmunks they are also expert beggars and known as camp robbers.
I was disappointed that the road was still closed as the webcam showed visibility and I was confident there would be a good sunset.
I earned a day off on January 23rd and with the road to the rim still closed, it was a good day to wander through the trees to a clearing where I could get decent views. Snow conditions were better, still not giggly joyful but the blue skies and sunshine made everything worthwhile.
As seems to be my new norm it was a double-dip day with snowshoeing followed by digging out my car.
Finally after 19 days, the gate to the rim reopened on January 24th. I was excited to see how different it looked after over 100″ (9′) of snow was received 600′ below the rim. They don’t measure at the rim but I’m guessing 12′ on the ground. My car was so excited to go for a drive after being on a short leash, only getting to move from parking spot to parking spot after being cleared of snow. She, like me, was feeling restless as I hadn’t left the park since January 3rd. Finding the best snowshoeing conditions all year I was ecstatic. Although short-lived, the momentary joy felt like a worthy paycheck. Within an hour of arrival it was blizzard conditions and time for incognito Ranger Jan to get back down the hill.
The day started as usual with snow flurries and no visibility but the forecast showed possibilities of clearing in the afternoon. I kept my eye on the webcam and as soon as it showed some visibility I switched from office mode to roving-on-snowshoes mode. When I arrived at the rim there wasn’t much visibility but soon I was granted views and so much more. The trees were loaded with snow and ice. The scene was incredible.
The fog came and went with the wind providing occasional teases of the lake and mountains. The hemlock trees were nodding a bit more than normal.
The trees were encased in ice. I could see blue ice with my polarized lenses. Wizard Island is in the distance.
Icicle magic. The lake side of the lodge with Garfield Peak in the background.
Brrrr . . . the lodge looks cold. No wonder they keep it closed during the winter.
What a scene! Postcard worthy.
Those are the doors to the restroom. I’m sure maintenance had to work hard to find and dig out those doors.
Driving home I was blocked by this roofalanche in my housing area and had to back up and take an alternate route.
The next day was a replay. I spent the morning in the office while it snowed outside. I kept an eye on the webcam and was hopeful my forecast was correct. Sure enough the stars aligned and upon arrival the lake was fogged over but the sun lit up Garfield Peak.
Ice was thick but I got a peek at Wizard Island. Snowshoeing conditions were even better than the previous day. Plus no wind!
Views became more visible as the fog lifted.
Frozen in time.
No doubt a winter view.
Snow sculptures created by wind. The building in the background is Rim Village Cafe and Gift Shop.
If you zoom in you can see that this image is decorated with snow flurries. I’m pretty excited about how my phone captured the details.
This is a rock entombed in ice. Notice the storm clouds.
What looks like a peninsula is a mirage. This deception was captured on several photos. Look again at the previous photo. There’s no water beyond the rim. It just happened that the first layer of sky matched the water.
After two days of rain, I was happy to be back out roving on snowshoes talking to visitors. When I arrived at the rim it was foggy, but I was trusting my optimistic froggy weather app and sure enough shortly after arriving I started seeing teases of views. Remember those icy white trees? All gone after two days of rain and warm temperatures. On a positive note all that powder is finally consolidating, on a negative it’s turning into mashed potatoes. Llao Rock was the star this day.
After two days of rain, I was so happy to see the sun.
A sun dog came out to play also.
With all the rain and warm temperatures the snow walls had been tumbling with roofalanches a daily occurrence. I’m sure my biceps and core got stronger with all this manual labor.
The chunks of ice sliding from the lodge roof were like missiles.
With the break in precipitation, I finally had an opportunity to enjoy sunset and sunrise views again. My last sunrise was January 1st and sunset was December 26th.
On January 29th, I successfully made it up Raven Trail on this third attempt. The previous two were thwarted by inconducive snow conditions. It was super challenging for me, between searching for the blue diamond markers hidden in trees, to breaking trail in mashed potato conditions, to the 600′ elevation gain. It took me 2.5 hours to snowshoe this 1.3 mile route. Of course I was stopping frequently to record every marker and route finding a few times while looking for the next marker. One arrow was pointed the wrong direction, that didn’t help. On my way down I met a group of three who were super happy I’d broken trail.
It was a beautiful day to celebrate at the rim and enjoy a well earned lunch, followed by an epsom salt soak upon completion.
Unexpected sun challenged me. I was pretty tuckered after multiple snowshoe sessions over the past few days, so instead of getting out for another active adventure, I took advantage of mother nature’s natural Vit D.
The new volunteers arrived on February 1st full of smiles, laughter, enthusiasm and we bonded immediately. They are my kind of peeps and are going to be an awesome addition to the team.
The weather normalized and returned to freezing conditions with near daily snowfall. After the rain and warm temperatures the deep powder consolidated, the lumpy bumpy mashed potato snow firmed up, froze and was covered with just the right amount of dry luscious powder, making for the best snowshoeing and ski conditions since I’ve been here.
There hadn’t been many opportunities for sunset views recently so when I saw a glimpse of blue sky I took the risk and drove to the rim. I was gifted the most awesome and unique colors with the lake turning a shade of turquoise.
The next day I spent a couple of hours watching the lake disappear, reappear and dance with delight as the sugar snow sparkled like glitter.
On Day #58, I left the park for the first time in 38 days. Although I was just escaping to get fuel, it was a peek into my future since my assignment was nearing it’s end. It was a days of firsts since January 3rd. First day I’d driven over 20mph, been below 6,000′, seen snow-free roadways, escaped snow walls and been below snowline, to see colored vegetation, and eaten restaurant food.
I was gifted another opportunity to watch sunrise on February 10th. This was one of those mornings I felt paid well for my volunteerism.
With warming temperatures in the forecast, I predicted this to be the last day for a while to enjoy these snow-laden trees. It was a great day for roving and chatting with visitors, including a group of five gals who declared me their favorite ranger.
Coming home to this mess put a bit of a damper on my great day. Once the sun hit my roof and snow wall it collapsed inward. So in exchange for digging out my car I got to dig out my entryway.
Sun on my days off felt like a win.
I’d been wanting to explore a ridge so I took off on a route-finding mission. Goal #1 was checking out some historic cabins, which are now used for seasonal housing and a Science & Learning Center.
This was the Superintendent’s house back in the day. A gal commented on the Crater Lake National Park facebook page that she lived there growing up and would love a photo.
This ridge has three highpoints. On my first day I reached the one at 7,047 feet.
Views were mostly blocked by trees but I found this one of 9,499′ Mount Mcloughlin.
I earned my grub while enjoying some natural Vit D.
The next day I went out to see if I could reach the next three high points on Munson Ridge. I was proud of my navigation skills when I reached my first intended target.
As you can see from the topography map, this ridge isn’t flat.
But I gained views from this first high point. Applegate and Garfield Peaks plus a glimpse down into the valley from where I started.
As I continued south toward the next high point, I was treated to additional views.
Just before the next high point, further progress was blocked. Although a pine marten danced his way to the top, the risk was way too high for me.
My goal was Munson Point but with no easy way around this obstacle I decided to turnaround. The green track was Day 2, the blue Day 1.
Snowshoeing is such a good workout.
With the forecast calling for snow, snow and more snow for the next week, I figured this might be my last chance for a sunset before my time ends.
Sure enough snow closed the gate again but on February 18th it reopened and I witnessed a temperamental lake, colored what I’m calling Storm Blue. When I arrived two months earlier I walked under the limb in the lower right of the photo.
A Flat Ranger arrived from a second grader and I got to take her on an adventure.
I used her for my groundhog post for the park and it was shared by several groups including US National Weather Service out of Medford Oregon. She became an awesome mascot with this post reaching nearly 500,000 people, engaging 20,000, garnering over 11,000 reactions. I loved the comments, “we need more content from Flat Ranger.” “I would trust a ranger over a groundhog any day.” “Flat Ranger needs a coat.”
I was proud of my creativity on this post.
Other posts are being regularly shared as well. I’ve enjoyed being able to make a difference by posting about current conditions, safety tips and FAQ’s.
Chiloquin News shared regularly.
At the office, I stayed busy answering phones, snail and emails. My favorite was the school kid letters. I’m impressed by their curiosity and smart questions. They required time researching and challenged me trying to figure out appropriate concise answers. I learned how some of my responses impact school projects. One teacher wrote that the kids create brochures about their park and then write a persuasive letter to their parents encouraging them to take them to the park they researched. Another wrote that the kids become student rangers for their selected park and do a presentation to student visitors. Here are a few examples.
I also really enjoyed chatting with visitors and taking their photos while roving on snowshoes. It was especially gratifying when they realized how lucky they were to arrive when the lake was visible and road open. One couple was from Australia. They flown into Las Vegas and planned to spend their time between Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks, but weather had them changing their plans to the west coast. They had visited Redwood National Park and spent the night in Medford where they learned about Crater Lake National Park. On a whim they visited, knowing nothing about the park or area. It was a perfect day and they rented snowshoes and were joyfully exploring when I met them. More often than not visitors are disappointed. Some days are 0% chance, others like this photo indicates are 50/50 with patience needed when a gift might just be granted.
The park monitors the weather and snowfall, reporting it daily to NOAA (link).
Over 9.5 weeks, I volunteered about 260 hours. My paydays were rich with sunsets, sunrises, rainbows, virgin snow, lots of powder, amazing scenes of frozen and flocked trees. I enjoyed the days I sat in my warm cabin feeling like I was living in a snow globe. The staff was kind, welcoming and appreciative. We became a community, and I’ll miss them. However, I’m looking forward to reuniting with spring.
Links:
- More Ranger Jan Posts
- More Jaunts in Oregon and at Crater Lake
- NPS – Crater Lake National Park
Jan's Jaunts and Jabberings 
A wonderful post! What a super job and place to be. Absolutely stunning photos. thank you so much.
Barrie
I appreciate your comments. I know it was a long post but it seemed best to keep it all together. Thanks for following along!
Beautiful photos and fascinating narrative! Thanks, Jan.
I’m so glad you enjoyed. I appreciate your thoughts.