Crater Lake: Both the deepest and most haunted lake in the U.S.?

Crater Lake closing for a few years might not grab most people’s attention. Unless you’re an outdoor lover from Oregon or neighboring Washington who likes visiting the lake.

I’ve never been there. Yet. I’ve wanted to go for years now, but unless I manage to get there this summer, I’ll have to wait a few more years to see it. Recently, the National Park Service (NPS) announced that Crater Lake will essentially be closed to boaters and swimmers starting at the end of the 2025 summer season. The Cleetwood Cove Trail, which is the only way to get to the lake, will close for repairs and upgrades until summer 2029.

But why is Crater Lake even on my radar? Because of the myths and legends, of course. I don’t remember which one it was, but it all started when I watched a TV show about Bigfoot sightings. Crater Lake was one of the places that was featured, and it became clear there was more happening there than Bigfoot.

The Myths and Lore of Crater Lake

Crater Lake was formed after a volcanic eruption over 7,000 years ago caused Mount Mazama to collapse inward, creating a caldera with a five-mile diameter. With a depth of 1,943 feet, it’s the deepest lake in the United States. Unlike many lakes, Crater Lake is not river or stream-fed. Rather, it’s filled by rainfall and snow melt.

Its violent start, which very possibly could’ve been witnessed and experienced by native people living in the area at the time, might explain some of the activity. It definitely could explain a popular legend.

Llao and Skell

The lake is a sacred place to indigenous people, including the Klamath Tribe. One of their legends explains the creation of Crater Lake. An underworld spirit named Llao emerged from the volcano, fell in love with a woman, but her father did not approve of her marrying Llao.

Angry, Llao, set fire to the surrounding forests, forcing the woman and her people to flee. However, Skell, a spirit said to live in nearby Mount Shasta, was either also in love with the woman or wanted to spare the people in general. He fought Skell, eventually defeated him, and when he did, water rushed up to fill the spot where he tossed Llao’s remains. The Klamath believe Crater Lake still holds Llao’s spirit.

Crater Lake Serpent

Rumors also circulate about a Loch Ness-like lake monster living in Crater Lake’s depths. In fact, Anderson Design Group even included the dragon-like “serpent” of Crater Lake in their Legends of the National Parks Guide Book.

Wizard Island and the Old Man

The island is so named because of its resemblance to a wizard’s hat. National Parks Traveler shared that park rangers have reported seeing campfires glowing on the island, which aren’t allowed. Some have even reported seeing people gathered around the campfires. However, when they go to investigate, they find nothing. No people, no fires, nothing. Creepy, right?

The Old Man seems to be one of the most beloved of the lake’s residents. It’s a 30-foot mountain hemlock that has floated upright freely in the lake for over 100 years. How has it lasted so long? The lake’s cold waters have helped preserve it, but National Parks Traveler reported that rangers admit it has “taken a beating” over the years. These days, there’s only about three feet of it visibly sticking out of the lake.

Bigfoot and UFO Sightings

As I mentioned above, it was a TV show about Bigfoot sightings that put Crater Lake on my radar. (But it was actually the fact that it’s considered a sacred place, and has a place called Wizard Island, that appealed to me.)

That people have reported seeing Bigfoot is not surprising. Oregon is one of the most popular states for Bigfoot sightings.

It’s not one of the most popular states for UFO sightings, but it definitely has had those, too. And Crater Lake is one of the places where reports have come from.

Is Crater Lake the most haunted lake in the U.S.?

After learning that Crater Lake was the deepest, and knowing it has such a variety of myths, legends, and paranormal activity, I couldn’t help but wonder, “Is it also the most haunted lake in America?”

What is “most haunted”?

Admittedly, “most haunted” is hard to truly quantify. After all, ghosts, Bigfoot, lake monsters, UFOs/UAPS, have still not been proven to be “real.” By hard scientific standards, that is.

However, the government has given more weight to studying UAPs. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) even has a page listing records related to UFO and UAP-related documents, including photographs, videos, and reports.

And YouTube and social media are laden with “evidence” of EVPs, photos, and videos collected by ghost hunters demonstrating their “proof” that paranormal activity exists.

Still, calculating “most haunted” anything is objective at best. Yet, inevitably, we humans love categorizing things, including haunted places, lakes included.

Most Haunted Lakes

I half-expected Crater Lake to be considered the most haunted lake in the U.S., but to my surprise, it wasn’t. If you trust the Google AI search result alone, Lake Lanier in Georgia nabs the most haunted lake in the U.S. title. There’s even a r/HighStrangeness Reddit thread about it being the most haunted in the world. (Although, whoever created it might be confusing “the U.S.” with “the world.”)

Other lakes that make a Google search honorable mention for most haunted include Gardner Lake in Connecticut, White Rock Lake in Texas, and Big Moose Lake in upstate New York.

However, I think The Travel created my favorite “most haunted lake” list. They used three criteria to rank them: Deaths, Legends, and Haunted By. They listed seven, including Lake Lanier, Crater Lake, Gardner Lake, and Big Moose Lake, but also the appropriately named Spirit Lake in Idaho. The other two rounding out their list were Pyramid Lake in Nevada and Lake Tahoe in California and Nevada.

Check-In

Have you ever visited any of the haunted lakes mentioned above?