Other walks connect the plaza, campground, and lodge with each other and were built by the NPS between 1931 and 1941. One defines the eastern edge of the parking area to the plaza comfort station, where it then goes in back of the Community House toward one of the loop roads in the campground. Another links the plaza with Crater Lake Lodge by means of a walkway on both sides of the Rim Village roadway. The third one allows for access through two islands of vegetation created by loop roads in front of the hotel so as to connect the parking area with the building’s main (south) entrance.
Four hiking trails begin at points within the district. The previously mentioned Garfield Peak Trail, constructed by the NPS in 1 931, begins east of the lodge along the promenade. At the western terminus of the promenade wall, is the Discovery Point Trail, opened in 1934. It became part of the Pacific Crest Trail in 1994 when the NPS provided an alternate route along the rim above Crater Lake. The NPS completed the Crater Wall Trail in 1929, a route which starts from a point north of the cafeteria on the promenade. This trail represented the primary way to reach the lakeshore until it closed in 1960; at that point a new route opened on the north side of Crater Lake at Cleetwood Cove. An unmaintained bridle trail, constructed in 1933 as part of a system originating from Park Headquarters, enters Rim Village from the south and terminates in the campground.
Vegetation within Rim Village has two aspects which define its significance: planting concepts (which describe the philosophy behind all plantings in the district) and plant materials (which are the material form of that philosophy).
Poor soils pervade Rim Village and are derived from the climactic eruptions of Mount Mazama which produced Crater Lake 7700 years ago. Subalpine conditions also limit the number of plant species and their profusion. In addition to these harsh growing conditions, much of the district’s vegetation had historically been destroyed by unrestricted circulation and concentrated visitor use. In seeking to develop the site so that it could accommodate visitors safely without further damage to the landscape, the NPS formulated a program of restoration and enhancement called “naturalization.” The agency’s landscape architects used three different treatments in the district: new plantings (establishing vegetation where none existed); supplemental plantings (adding materials to enhance areas for design and functional purposes); and integrated plantings (using vegetation to blend buildings, roads, and other features with the surroundings).
The composition of plant materials used by the NPS in its naturalization program was inspired by similarly-situated areas around the rim of Crater Lake, such as Sun Notch. Landscape architects responded by developing small planting beds over the entire length of Rim Village, where they added shrubs and herbaceous materials to reflect natural plant associations and communities. Trees were transplanted and grouped, but not so densely that they obscured views of Crater Lake from the road. Herbaceous plants and perennials were massed below shrubs, which often aided the transition between the ground and buildings. Large trees likewise framed views, screened circulation features, and softened vertical lines imposed by large structures. Consequently, a greater number of perennials, shrubs, and trees now thrive in the district than would otherwise be present in a similar subalpine plant community.
