Arant also desired to promote fishing in the park. According to the superintendent, there were no fish in any waters of the park except for the lake and lower Anna Creek below the falls. The lake was well-stocked with rainbow trout, A.L. Parkhurst of the Crater Lake Company having planted 50,000 fry in 1910. The fish that were caught were usually from 14 to 20 inches in length, although some were as long as 24 to 26 inches and weighing 6 to 7 pounds. Arant recommended that small brown crawfish be planted in the lake to serve as fish food. Lower Anna Creek had a few Dolly Varden trout, and to enhance fishing in the park, Arant wished to stock upper Anna, Sand, Wheeler, and Castle creeks with mountain trout or eastern brook trout.
With the growth of park visitation safety became a major issue confronting Superintendent Arant by the early 1910s. As a result “of the caution exercised in regard to the quality, condition, and the management of all automobiles and other conveyances used upon the roads, and all launches and other boats upon the lake,” Arant was able to report that there were no accidents in the park during the tourist seasons of 1910-12. However, a tragic death occurred in January 1911 when B.B. Bakowski, a photographer, lost his life after hiking to the lake amid snow depths of 12 to 15 feet and subzero temperatures. His death caused Arant to recommend that all travel in the park be prohibited from December 1 to June 1 each year unless written permission was granted by the superintendent.
Based on a report prepared by Special Inspector E.A. Key for the Secretary of the Interior in September 1910, Arant strongly recommended in both 1911 and 1912 that measures be taken to increase park water power generation and to construct a small electric power plant at the park headquarters. To increase the power that operated the hydraulic ram for raising the water to the superintendent’s office and residence and adjacent grounds, he proposed that a dam be erected below the large spring at the head of Anna Creek. A small electric plant could be erected at the dam to furnish light for the buildings and grounds at the headquarters.
Regulations were drawn up on November 15, 1910, to govern the admission of automobiles into the park for the 1911 tourist season (a copy of these regulations may be seen in Appendix A). The regulations provided that no automobile would be permitted in the park unless the owner secured a written permit–the fee being $1 for a single round trip and $5 for a seasonal pass. The regulations specified speed limits and other safety precautions to handle the increasing travel on park roads.
During 1911 and 1912 the park attempted to enforce these regulations in a diligent manner. In the first year 268 single round trip permits and three seasonal passes were issued. The following year 430 single round trip permits were issued. [17]
As Arant’s superintendency drew to a close Crater Lake National Park attracted increasing attention as a result of publicity in national periodicals and Department of the Interior publications. In an article published in the June 1912 issue of National Geographic Crater Lake was described as being “unsurpassed in the gorgeousness and grandeur of its scenery, unrivaled in its location on the summit of a mountain 7,000 feet above sea-level, and unparalleled in its geologic history.” [18]
In 1912 the Department of the Interior published two booklets on Crater Lake that enhanced public awareness of its scenery and geological significance. A 24-page booklet entitled Geological History of Crater Lake: Crater Lake National Park was prepared for sale (10 cents) by the U.S. Government Printing Office. Written by J.S. Diller of the U.S. Geological Survey the publication discussed the geological origins of the lake, its discovery and exploration, and its scenic grandeur. [19]
