Similar to Lake Tahoe, the water here was spectacularly blue. The color ranged from deep dark blue to a turquoise hue. This crater in the center of the lake is called Wizard island and is actually a dormant volcano. The more intriguing aspect of this area is the fact that the island is a mere mini volcano that resided inside a much much larger volcano. This volcano used to stretch the entire span of the lake! The remains can be seen around the edges of the lake where the mountains look as though they just drop off entirely, When we started driving to the lake it was a warm and comfortable 70 degrees. When we reached the optimal viewpoint of wizard island it was close to 40 degrees! Lots of elevation brings cold and snow which prevented us from hiking around the lake. All the sites were blocked off due to heavy snow accumulation. It was peaceful to just sit above the lake, feel the cold nipping at our cheeks, and just enjoy the beauty and sheer size of what was left by this huge volcano erupting many years ago.
