Design and Construction of Approach Roads

<< Previous | Table of Contents | Next >>

Just as the Rim Road was reconstructed into Rim Drive, the approach routes to Crater Lake have also been realigned in response to higher traffic volumes, increased speeds, and changing connections to the regional road network. The greatest changes to approach roads came in the 1930s, as the BPR and NPS collaborated on building Rim Drive, though redesign of small segments in each of these routes has continued to the present. Most changes have stemmed from functional concerns like improving curvature and lessening grade, rather than a concerted attempt to provide stopping points and vistas to motorists. None of the approaches could "present" the central attraction of Crater Lake, but they sometimes supplied interesting views of the steam canyons and hinterland.

Initial changes in alignment of the Fort Klamath — Jacksonville wagon road through the park took place under superintendent W.F. Arant, who started the process by hiring a location survey in October 1902. This led to crews building 2 miles of road in Munson Valley the following year and improving sections of the wagon road between Annie Spring and the park's south entrance. Work continued on both roads in 1904 through the use of hired labor and teams. Crews completed the road through Munson Valley to Rim Village in August 1905, one that possessed a graded width of roughly 8' and a maximum grade of 10 percent.

Arant successfully pitched the need for a new road from Whitehorse Creek to Annie Spring, so construction of this wagon route began once road crews reached the rim. The road built from Whitehorse included one section with a 10 percent grade over the Cascade Divide, but it ultimately shortened the distance formerly traveled on the wagon road of 1865 by a half mile and eliminated two relatively steep grades. Although completion of the Whitehorse — Annie Spring segment made travel easier, Arant pointed to the need for widening and straightening portions of the 1865 road still in use so as to better accommodate automobiles. He described that portion of the road between the west and south entrances of the park as being "tracks little wider than a wagon and one or two feet deep, and it is very difficult for teams to pass." Arant reported on park roads as being kept in the "best condition possible" with only limited funds available for improvements, though widening had been accomplished in places. Generally, however, the trees and other obstacles were situated too close to road margins to permit a team to turn out of the narrow track. Dust made travel over any of the roads disagreeable over the greater portion of summer, but this could be overcome through the use of road sprinklers.