How Crowded Is Crater Lake National Park in August?

August runs about 2.8× Crater Lake National Park's average month, which makes it a very busy month here — roughly 23% of the park's yearly visitors come in August.

In a typical August the park sees about 148,000 recreation visits, based on National Park Service monthly counts from 1979 to 2025.

That makes August the 2nd-busiest of the park's twelve months, sitting between the July peak (3.4×) and the January low (0.1×).

On our Best Time to Visit score August rates 48/100 ("Fair") — the single best-rated month at Crater Lake, balancing crowds against weather and daylight.

Typical August weather, from 1991–2020 NOAA climate normals at the nearest station, averages a daytime high near 69°F and an overnight low around 42°F, with about 0.8" of precipitation.

That average of about 55°F is a comfortable range for hiking and being outdoors all day.

August falls inside the park's busiest stretch: June, July and August together pull about 65% of the year's visitors, so a visit this month means sharing the park with the peak-season crowd.

You'll have about 13.8 hours of daylight in August to explore — between the 8.8-hour midwinter low and the 15.2-hour summer high.

Park-wide, 2025 drew 632,242 recreation visits, up 25.2% from 504,942 in 2024.

Across the past decade overall visitation has eased about 19.4%, so August may feel a touch quieter than it once did.