Several years ago, our family stood at the rim of Crater Lake, amazed at the astonishing blue body of water, beautifully ringed by steep pitched mountains. Along with the larger Wizard Island formation in the center, I particularly liked the Phantom Ship, which really resembles a ghost ship if you squint. We did a typical touristy drive around and pop out at lookouts thing—which you can still do, although today’s news is that Crater Lake will soon be closed for boating and swimming. But if you’re bent on getting into the water, here are some other national parks that are just as good.
Why and when is Crater Lake National Park closing?
At the end of the 2025 summer season, the National Park Service will cut off access to the Cleetwood Cove Trail, according to ABC News. That is the only trail that provides access to the lake—the country’s deepest at 1,949 feet deep, formed within a volcanic caldera. Access will be closed for around four years as the park service rehabs the trail from rockfall hazards and performs construction. Boat tours will also pause for the four-year period. The trail is scheduled to reopen in the summer of 2029. Note: you will still be able to drive the rim trail to get views of the lake, but that is a drive that is very seasonal, and in fact winter storms have currently closed the entrance road and the east and west rim drives, which means no lake view can be obtained from your car. Still, several areas of the national park are open year-round; check here for details.
What are the best alternative national parks to visit?
Crater Lake is the only national park in Oregon, so you may wish to head to California for a profusion of national parks. The two closest to the Oregon border are Redwood National and State Parks (where you can swim at the beach or in rivers and creeks inside the parks) and Lassen Volcanic National Park (where you can swim in park lakes and creeks but not in geothermal pools). Neighboring state Idaho doesn’t have any national parks, while the closest national park to the border in Washington state is Mount Rainier National Park. There you can swim at Bench and Snow lakes but it’s really super cold because they are alpine lakes!