Crater Lake National Park guide · 2 min read
Rim Village Promenade and Historic Rustic Architecture
Rim Village sits on the south rim of Crater Lake, and many people get their first look at the lake from here.
The village is a historic district added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1997. Its buildings and paths reflect a design shaped by the natural setting and influenced by art, with native stone and logs used in a rustic style.
The Rim Village Promenade follows the edge of the caldera for one third of a mile. A native stone parapet wall runs alongside it, with three observation bays set into the wall so you can stop and look out over the lake. Paths curve around the natural plantings, and the route is dog-friendly, making it a convenient pedestrian way through the village.
The architecture rewards a slow pace. Steeply pitched roofs topped with shaker shingles and large dormer windows shelter long front porches, and those details give the village its character. Boulder drinking fountains made of native rock once ran along the promenade, and today just one still works.
The self-guided walking tour links several points of interest. Fred Kiser built the Kiser Studio in 1921 and enlarged it in 1926, and there he sold hand-colored postcards of the lake made from his photographs. The Community House, completed in 1924, is the oldest of the buildings the Park Service has put up in the park, and in its early years it staged evening shows and ranger talks.
The Sinnott Memorial Overlook opened in 1931 and draws more visitors than any other viewpoint in the park. It sits 50 feet below the rim and was laid out as a trailside museum, with exhibits on the geology of Mount Mazama and how Crater Lake formed. Plan to spend time with the displays and the open view across the water.
