Record Time Up Crater

    Sitting on the bench halfway up the trail to Crater Lake, I glanced at my watch, and made an unplanned decision to continue up to the top.  The morning had been spent indoors, waiting for the clouds to clear off as predicted.  It was after noon before I even stepped outside, and there were no lofty mountain climbing plans on the table for the rest of the day. Heading out of town towards Power Creek, the sun continued to warm up the sky, and a tentative destination of hiking up to the bench was decided.  At Skater's Cabin a group of boisterous young women and dogs was just heading up. I hung back for a while, letting them clear the path of anything grumpy in our way. When I checked the time at the bench, even despite my late start and leisurely pace following others, it was still early and I seemed to be making great time.
      With no other plans for the evening, the sky blue and gorgeous, and a storm system moving in the next day, there was no good reason not to go to the top. Just before the trail flattened out I ran into a hiker on their way down and stopped for a uplifting conversation and kind words. The lake was a beautiful rainbow of colors, from the deep blues of the sky to the multi-colored reflections, shadows, and the clouds just starting to peak over the mountain tops. The decision to visit this awesome place today was the right one. After wandering around enjoying everything except for the increase in bug population, I again checked on the time. Time had stopped. Not just metaphorically, but really. My watch read the same as it had halfway up here. I smiled, now understanding how I had been able to make a world record breaking timed ascent of Crater Lake. There was no longer a reasonable time to stay or to head back down. Time was no more.