Upon rising the slope bordering the lake, the first impression made upon your mind is one of disappointment; it does not come up to your expectations; but this is only momentary. A second look, and you begin to comprehend the majestic beauties of the scenery spread out before you, and you sit down on the brink of the precipice, and feast your eyes on the awful grandeur, your thoughts wander back thousands of years to the time when, where now is a placid sheet of water, there was a lake of fire, throwing its cinders and ashes to vast distances in every direction. The whole surroundings prove this lake to be the crater of an extinct volcano. The appearance of the water in the basin, as seen from the top of the mountain, is that of a vast circular sheet of canvass, upon which some painter had been exercising his art. The color of the water is blue, but in very many different shades, and like the colors in variegated silk, continually changing. Now a spot will be dark blue, almost approaching black, the next moment it will change to a very pale blue; and it is thus continually changing from one shade to another. I cannot account for this changeableness, as the sky was perfectly clear, and it could not have been caused by any shadows; there was, however, a gentle breeze, which caused a ripple of the waters; this may account for it.
At first sight a person would not estimate the surface of the water to be more than two or three hundred feet below the summit of the surrounding bluffs; and it is only after a steady look almost perpendicularly down into the water, that you begin to comprehend the distance. In looking down into the lake the vision seems to stop before reaching the bottom, and to use a common expression, you have to look twice before you see the bottom.
Heretofore, it has been thought by those who have visited the lake, that it was impossible to get to the water, and this was also my impression at first, and I should have continued to remain on the summit, and view its beauties from that point without attempting to get to the water, but for Sergeant Stearns and Mr. Ford, who, after gazing for awhile from the top, disappeared over the precipice, and in a few minutes were at the bottom, near the waters edge, where no human beings ever stood before. Their shout induced Mr. Coats and myself to attempt the feat, which is in fact only perilous in imagination. A spring of water bursts out of the mountain near the top, on the side where we were, and by following down the channel which the water has made, a good footing may be obtained all the way down. . . . The water in the lake is as clear as crystal, and about the same temperature with the well water in Rogue River Valley. We saw no fish of any kind, nor even insects in the water; the only thing we saw that indicated that there are fish in the lake, was a Kingfisher. . . . Near the western shore of the lake is an island, about one half mile in diameter, upon which there is considerable timber growing. The island is not more than one quarter of a mile from the western shore of the lake, and its shape is a frustrum of a cone; the top seems to be depressed, and I think there is a small crater in the summit of the island. . . . I do not know who first saw this lake, nor do I think it should be named after the discoverer. Sergeant Stearns and Peyton Ford are the first white men who ever reached its waters, and if named after any person, should be named for them; but as I do not believe any more majestic sheet of water is found upon the face of the globe, I propose the name “Majesty” . . . . [4]
There is documentation indicating that at least three other parties visited Crater Lake in 1865. In mid-August an article appeared in the Oregon Sentinel mentioning the visit a week earlier of a party of citizens to “Great Sunken Lake” in the Cascade Mountains northeast of Jacksonville. Obviously referring to Crater Lake, it stated that “no living man ever has, and probably never will, be able to reach the water’s edge.” These visitors were probably citizens from Jacksonville who had gone out to inspect the progress of the Fort Klamath-Jacksonville wagon road and view the lake as news of its location and beauty was spreading throughout the area. [5]
On September 3, 1865, a party of eleven men, led by James D. Fay, arrived on the west side of the lake during a hunting trip to Diamond Peak. Fay found a more gentle slope enabling the party to descend to the water, where the men inscribed their names and the date on a nearby rock. Intrigued by Wizard Island they determined to return and bring a boat with which they could reach the island and explore its slopes and summit. [6]
The reports reaching surrounding settlements regarding the scenic grandeur of the remote lake began to capture the imagination of more adventurous spirits. Soon theOregon Sentinel reported that the “desire to see and explore Lake Majesty” had become intense. [7] On October 9 a party of citizens and officers from Fort Klamath, including two women–Miss Annie Gaines and Mrs. O.T. Brown–visited the lake and camped in a clearing near where the present park administration buildings are situated. Annie Gaines, for whom Annie Spring and Annie Creek are named, became the first woman to reach the water’s edge. [8]
