Rogue Gorge

For those traveling through the Crater Lake area, the Rogue River Gorge is worth a stop.  The site is easy to access from Crater Lake Highway just south of Farewell Bend Campground.

The river is viewable from near the edge of the parking lot, but a quick stroll down the paved path reveals the magic of the Rogue River as it carves it's path through hardened basalt lava tubes.  This narrow chasm is 500 feet long and barely 25 feet wide at it's narrowest point, with roughly 410,000 gallons of water flowing through it each minute.  This results in an awesome display of the water's power as it cascades and churns below.  

Douglas fir trees cling precariously to the edges of the basalt cliffs and provide welcome shade on hot days.  Stop to view and read about the 'living stump' that uses its root structure to feed off of neighbor trees.

The paved trail continues for a half-mile and provides discreet views of the powerful Rogue River as it flows down from Crater Lake and before it disappears underground a few miles downstream, only to reemerge as a much wider and gentler river.