A floating tree stump known as the “Old Man of the Lake” has been
bobbing in the blue water of Oregon’s Crater Lake for at least 120
years, baffling scientists with its upright orientation and allegedly
even controlling the local weather.
The first account of the Old Man of the Lake dates back to 1896, when
geologist and explorer Joseph Diller described a splintered and
bleached white log floating vertically in Crater Lake. Five years later,
Diller observed that the unusual log had moved 400 meters from the
location it had originally been spotted at. Further research would show
that the Old Man of the Lake is able to move more than four miles in
just one day, despite lacking any apparent means of propulsion. How it’s
able to do that is still a mystery, but it’s only one of many.
Carbon dating suggests that the Old Man of the Lake is at least 450
years old, at least 120 of which it spent bobbing in the water of Crater
Lake, the deepest lake in the United States, and the ninth deepest in
the world. Experts believed the log, most likely a hemlock, wound up in
the water following a landslide, but as to why it remained upright
instead of floating horizontally, no one has a definitive answer.
The laws of physics state that a floating object of uniform density
will always have its center of mass as being higher than its center of
buoyancy, which is why tree logs float horizontally, but the Old Man of
the Lake is different. Despite being 9-meters-long, with a diameter of
about 61 cm, it’s been bobbing vertically for the last 120 years.
The exposed end of the floating log is splintered, discolored and
worn, but wide and buoyant enough to support a person’s weight, as shown
by this old photo of a ranger standing on top of it. According to some
scientists, this apparent equilibrium between the dry part and the
submerged part that allow the Old Man of the Lake to float the way it
does.
According to the Crater Lake Institute, the most plausible
explanation for the vertical floating position of this famous tree log
is that when it slid into the water over a century ago, it must have had
some rocks tangled in its roots which acted as natural anchor points.
By the time the rocks were released from the roots of the log, the
submerged wood had already become saturated with water, making it denser
and heavier than the dry part above the surface.
Of course, no one knows if the above explanation is what actually
makes the Old Man of the Lake float upright. The clear water of Crater
Lake offers a clear view of the tree’s roots, and there’s no sign of any
rocks, nor can anyone remember ever seeing or hearing of rocks attached
to its roots. But as National Park ecologist Mark Buktenica told CBS, “I’m okay with not knowing”.
As if its unusual floating position wasn’t intriguing enough,
superstitious folks also believe the Old Man of the Lake has the power
to affect local weather. This stems from events during the late 1980’s,
when submarine explorations were conducted in the lake, and scientists
decided to tie the floating log to the side of an island in order to
avoid navigational accidents during their research.
According to several accounts from locals, as soon as the Old Man of
the Lake was immobilized, the clear weather turned stormy, and it soon
started to snow. This was in August… Soon after the Old Man was
released, the weather cleared up again.
When it comes to the Old Man of the Lake, we seem to have more
questions than answers, but that’s a big part of what makes it such a
fascinating attraction of Crater Lake.
