Most Gorgeous Place on the Planet?

Trip Start May 15, 2004

Trip End Aug 09, 2004

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Flag of United States Crater Lake, Oregon
Wednesday, July 21, 2004

We left Yosemite and decided to check out Lake Tahoe. The town is gorgeous, but it was also too ritzy for us. Our campsite sucked and was like $25. Ridiculous. So we became a little disenchanted with the place and decided to leave. Immediately. We demanded our money back for the site and got out of Dodge. We drove all the way out of California and into Oregon. We slept in the car on the side of the road somewhere.

The next morning we drove into Crater Lake. That place is amazing. It's what's left of an old volcano, the huge hollowed out crater with snow covered peaks surrounding it on all sides. The water is the clearest in the fresh water in the world. It's volcanic rock so there's no sediment to get stirred up in the water. You can see forever. The water is about 33 degrees, but I still decided to have a swim. It was one of the most peaceful experiences of my life. I just laid back and stared at the peaks enveloping me. Gorgeous. I really do love this place. At the time, it was the most beautiful area I'd ever seen. Machu Picchu may have trumped it, but it's close.

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