In 2026, Crater Lake Will Close For Two Years For Construction

Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the United States located in Oregon, will close in 2026 for construction. The lake will stay closed for around two years.

At 1,943 feet, Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States and one of the deepest in the world. The depths were first explored in 1886 by a group from the U.S. Geological Survey. Their sounding device consisted of a lead pipe attached to piano wire. After lowering it into the water at 168 locations around the lake, they determined the deepest part was 1,996 feet. Amazingly, this was only 53 feet shy of the official depth measurement recorded with multibeam side scan sonar in 2000. Impressive! ^[1]

The Construction

The park service is planning to work on multiple problems throughout the two years. The four main problems to be fixed are as follows:

• Rehabilitation of the entire 1.1 mile trail including improvements to trail tread and retaining walls.
• Rockfall scaling and mitigation along identified high risk zones.
• Removal and replacement of the failed bulkhead/dock with a structurally stable marina.
• Replacing the outdated and undersized composting toilets located near the marina. ^[2]

While the construction is going on, individuals will not be able to hike down to the lake or go on boat tours on the lake.

Why Two Years

The available construction time at Crater Lake is very short since the fall through spring months are full of snow. Since the construction is extensive, it will take place over a couple of summer seasons. If construction goes as planned, Crater Lake will open again in summer of 2029. ^[3]

Crater Lake

The main trail down to the actual lake is the 1.1-mile-long Cleetwood Clove Trail. Hundreds of people come to Crater Lake to dive off the cliffs, swim in the clear, blue water, and go on boat tours. If you can’t make it to Crater Lake before 2026, you still will be able to see it on the cliffs surrounding the lake during the construction closure. ^[4]