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Photo: M.O. Stevens, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Exhibits on geology and lake research, and a popular view of the lake.
The Sinnott Memorial Observation Station is a sheltered viewpoint built into the caldera cliff 900 feet above Crater Lake in southern Oregon, United States. It is located near the Rim Village Visitor Center in Crater Lake National Park. The structure includes a small natural history museum with exhibits that highlight the geologic history of Mount Mazama and the formation of Crater Lake. The building was officially dedicated as the Nicholas J. Sinnott Memorial Observation Station and Museum; however, it is commonly known as the Sinnott Memorial Overlook or Sinnott Viewing Area. It is architecturally significant because it was the first National Park Service building constructed specifically as a museum and the first structure built in Crater Lake National Park using rustic stone masonry construction. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Sinnott Memorial Building No. 67.
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Only for those who are willing to hike about 15 minutes down into the crater. Access is by 1.1 mile (1.8 km) Cleetwood Trail which descends 700 feet (213 m) to the lake surface. An additional ticket will get you onto Wizard Island. Once there you can explore the island, hike to the Witches Cauldron crater, or visit Fumarole Bay. The price can be expensive but it's well worth it.
Can be reached in the summer from the Rim Drive on a paved, 6-mile (9.6 km) road. These eerie spires of eroded ash rise from the edges of Sand and Wheeler Creeks in pinnacle-fashion. On the way you'll pass Lost Creek Campground. Once upon a time, the road continued east of the turn-out, to the former East Entrance of the park. A path now replaces the old road and follows the rim of Sand Creek (and more views of pinnacles) to where the entrance arch still stands. A different route back to the Rim Drive, is to take the Grayback Road, a one-way, westbound only, gravel road.