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1987
1988
1989
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January
Five Lake researchers spend five days on Wizard Island studying
the Lake. The biggest surprise was to learn that fish spawn in
January.
January 21
The Portland Oregonian comes out in favor of preserving the
Lodge for the benefit of the public. “Crater Lake is a major
attractor of tourists to Oregon and a major contributor to the
economic health of Southern Oregon. Its role ought not be
restricted to five months a year. Thus, the need for a fifth
alternative: restoring the historic lodge for year-round
accommodations.”
January 26
At a hearing held in Medford, the NPS was told by many in the
audience that “Crater Lake Lodge is a historic treasure and
needs to be retained in some form. NW Regional Director, Charles
Odegaard responded by saying, “ I will make the best decision I
am capable about making. Hearings were also held in Klamath
Falls, Roseburg and Portland. Several people felt the Lodge
should be retained, but turned into an interpretive center.
February
The past seven months have seen the lowest accumulative snowfall
on record.
February 25
NPS Northwest Regional Director, Charles Odegaard announces that
Crater Lake Lodge will be restored for summer use and a new
60-room year-round lodge and visitors center will be built on
the Rim. The total project is estimated to cost $33
million. Lodge rehabilitation costs set at $6.8 million. (The
final price tag by 1995 nears $21 million for the old lodge and
the costs for the new hotel soars over $66 million.) The key
features of the project include: A three-level, 2.5 acre parking
structure for about 640 vehicles. An adjacent lot would serve
recreational vehicles and tour buses; a new pedestrian walkway,
including an underpass below Rim Drive; the existing 400-car
parking lot and another 100 parking spaces along the rim would
be removed and replaced by natural vegetation. New housing for
98 seasonal employees would be built at Mazama Village, plus a
5,000-foot concession workshop and storage building. A new
headquarters building would be built near the south entrance. A
smaller dormitory, warehouse, museum storage and offices, plow
shed and shuttle bus barn would also be built there.
March 28
Karen and Mike Riplinger of Eugene, OR, are rescued by
helicopter after being lost for seven days in a snowstorm while
attempting to ski around the Lake.
April 21
Three peregrine falcon chicks are born on a rocky cliff overlook
the Lake. This is the first successful natural hatching of Park
peregrines in eight years. The hatching is the culmination of a
seven-year effort to reestablish falcons at the Park.
May 12
Jim Milestone, resource specialist reports that both the newly
hatched falcon chicks and the mother are missing and believed
dead. “It’s a big, big loss,” Milestone said. “It’s a major
disappointment.” Great horned owls may have attacked the birds.
1987 - 1988
Snowfall: 369 inches, 31 feet.
June 15
Crater Lake gains special protection from geothermal drilling by
being designated by Congress as a “significant” thermal feature.
The designation protects the areas around the Park from leasing
if drilling will hurt the thermal features.
July 7
Hank Tanski, Assistant Chief of Interpretation, transfers to
John Day NM after 10 years of service.
July 12
A boat load of Park visitors is stranded on Wizard Island due to
high winds and 7 foot waves. The group reaches the top of the
Cleetwood Trail around midnight. Rangers used a small tractor
and trailer to pull four people up the trail. One woman had
twisted her ankle, one person was nauseous, and two others
complained of fatigue.
July 26
A lightning strike on the north side of Mt. Scott burns 0.1
acres. The fire is monitored as a prescribed natural fire.
(dubbed the Prophecy Fire)
August 2
An Aerospatiale Super Puma helicopter lowers a one-man submarine
to the boat dock on Wizard Island. NPS fish biologist, Mark
Buktenica was quoted as saying, “ This is a fantastic
opportunity...a once-in-a-lifetime chance.” Deep Rover, weighing
7,200 pounds will spend the next three weeks exploring the
depths of Crater Lake looking geothermal vents, among other
things. The three week summer research project will cost
$225,000.The sub has a top speed of 1.5 knots.
Following several dives, Jack Dymond and Robert Collier, both
oceanographers from Oregon State, describe the bottom of Crater
Lake as being a moonscape of underwater cliffs from 50 to 150
feet tall, scattered rocks, mineral deposits and fields of
sediment. Dymond was quoted as saying, “I found it an
extraordinary experience I have ever had.” At 1,200 feet the
scientists could turn off the Deep Rover’s battery powered
lights, look up, and still see blue light filtering through the
surface. “That is quite an incredible depth for light to
penetrate,” Collier said. “It is one of the more amazing things
to me.”
August 8
According to the MT, last Friday, Oceanographer Jack Dymond
becomes the first person to see the bottom of Crater Lake.
August 13
The 13th running of the Crater Lake Marathon.
6. 7 miles Don Clary, 31, 34:50
13 miles Ric Sayre, 33, of Ashland, OR 1:09:20 (broke 10 year
old record)
26 miles Don Stearns, 27, of Bend, OR 2:47:17 (has now won all
3 events) Dawn Welch, 40, of Grants Pass, OR 3:18:22 (new
women’s record)
August 14 & 15
Deep Rover locates moss growing in the Lake at 700 feet below
the surface, setting a new World’s record for underwater
plants, surpassing the old moss depth record of 425 feet.
August
Park Biologist, Mark Buktenica describes the feeling of diving
into the World’s deepest lake: “I was sitting alone in Crater
Lake, 600 feet underwater in a small submarine name Deep
Rover. I had just completed collecting rock samples along an
underwater edge of Wizard Island, and I had 135 pounds of rocks
in a basket attached to the front of the submarine. Unknown to
me at the time, a couple of O-ring seals were leaking throughout
the dive. Water seeping through the seals into the submarine,
combined with condensation from my breathing, created an
uncomfortable amount of water on the floor. My feet were near
the front of the vessel, and as I prepared to start to the
surface with the rocks, the submarine tilted forward. As the
submarine tipped, the water level at my feet rose rapidly,
giving the distinct impression that the submarine was filling
with water. Garbled and intermittent communications with the
surface crew aggravated the situation. Everyone operated
expertly and efficiently; Deep Rover and the rock samples were
recovered smoothly. Actual dangers and repairs turned out to be
minimal, and the submarine dove again the next day.”
(from Crater Lake Nature Notes)
Diving to the deepest part of the Lake: By Mark Buktenica, Park
Biologist: “I had the distinct privilege of conducting 17 dives
in Deep Rover. As I slowly sank into the depths of the lake, I
was engulfed in blue which eventually turned to darkness. The
only sounds in the submarine were the creaking and popping of
the hull as it adjusted to the increasing pressure and the
persistent hum of the carbon dioxide scrubbers cleaning the
air. The journey to the bottom could take up to 30 minutes,
during which time my personal fears were easily extinguished by
the intrigue and demands of the work. After reaching the bottom
on my dive to the deepest part of Crater Lake, I shut off the
scrubbers and instrument lights to better experience the
solitude and quiet, and to briefly reflect on being the first
person to visit the deepest part of the lake. After several
moments, I looked up through the clear acrylic hull and noticed
that the dive flag mounted on top of the submarine was visible,
and silhouetted against a slightly lighter background. At 1,932
feet in depth my eyes could detect the vague light from the
surface, a surprising testament to Crater Lake’s incredibly
clarity. Yet there was little time for introspection. With less
than six hours allowed per dive, I was fully occupied with
monitoring electrical and life-support systems, operating the
submarine, collecting samples, recording observations on tape
and film, and communicating with the surface boat via an
underwater wireless telephone. Although the submersible was
designed to operate instinctively, many of the task I had to
perform required extreme concentration and were mentally
challenging, physically demanding, and sometimes frustrating.
Most of the lake floor is covered by fine sand colored
sediments, and operating the sub there was like flying at night
over an uncharted desert.
August 15
The Prophecy Fire, burning since July 26 has now covered 20
acres.
August 24
The Prophecy Fire grows from 105 acres to 1,000 acres in one
afternoon. By the time it was declared controlled on August 31,
the fire-fighting costs ballooned to $700,000. The fire was
declared officially dead on December 1, 1988.
August 25
Entrance fees to all National Parks are suspended for one
day. Charles Odegaard, regional director, dedicates the old
superintendent’s residence as a National Historic Landmark.
Summer
30 natural fires were suppressed. Two natural fires are allowed
to burn covering 7.6 acres. One prescribed burn of 14 acres.
October 29
A hiker along the Pacific Crest Trail discovers the body of
Douglas Cracker, one half mile north of Hwy 62. Cracker had died
of a single shot to the head. In tracing Cracker’s movements,
rangers discover that the young man had left his home in
California on August 22 and later stayed in a Klamath Falls
motel on the nights of October 7 & 8. On October 9, the motel
managers drove him to Fish Lake so that he could hike the PCT,
north. When no further word was received from him by October 19,
the managers reported Cracker missing. Cracker was seen in the
Rim Cafeteria on October 20. That afternoon he began hiking
south on the Dutton Creek Trail. He set up camp on the PCT and
stayed there one or two days before committing suicide. A note
was found in his wallet. Between October 20 and 29 a black bear
found the body and dragged it downslope. Ranger McGuinness and
Van Horn were the first rangers to respond to the hiker’s
report, but they had to call for assistance when they determined
that the bear was present nearby. The retrieval operation pretty
much killed the Park’s Halloween party that Saturday night.
November 11
A five-person research team is trapped on Wizard Island for
a week by heavy storms. 50 mph winds kept the helicopter
grounded.
December 1
Three structures in Rim Village are listed on the National
Register of Historic Structures. Two of the buildings had been
slated for removal. This complicates the plans for Rim
development.
December 20 - 23
Brian Smith, 18, of Jacksonville, Oregon is trapped by a
blizzard for four days behind Button Cliff, while attempting to
ski around Crater Lake. It took Smith six hours to ski east out
to the Dutton area, and three days to ski back to Headquarters.
Stove froze, no water or hot food.
1988 Fiscal year
Park budget set at $1.7 million
Season Visitation: 473,669
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1987
1988
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