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Lassen Volcanic National Park |
Dates: (6 days, 5 nights; Sun-Fri) |
Assembly Point: Reno, NV |
Tour Cost: $1,795 (includes all lodging, all meals, Timberline van shuttles between Reno and Lassen, park entrance fees, leaders, trail maps & narratives) |
On Memorial Day, 1914, after centuries of slumber, Lassen Peak, southernmost of the mighty volcanoes of the Cascades, awakened with a ferocity not unlike that replicated some 66 years later by its sister peak to the north — Mount Saint Helens. About a year later, after a period of sustained activity, Lassen blew its top, tossing 20-ton boulders about like pebbles, some of which landed in the distant streets of Reno to the east. Smaller eruptions continued for the next seven years leaving the landscape littered to this day with volcanic debris.
Though Lassen once again sleeps, the region remains as one of our youngest active volcanoes. Today, Lassen Peak, its extensive adjacent collection of geothermal features, its volcanic moonscape surrounded by lush coniferous forests and countless, glistening high country lakes, have found protection within the parameters of Lassen Volcanic National Park. The message of this Park is clear — our planet is alive; its surface may be quiet, but its profound energy bubbles within. Lassen's numerous fumaroles and mud pots offer convincing evidence of this geothermal presence.
We'll assemble in Reno, still home to some of those random parts of Lassen Mountain, and van shuttle early morning of Day 1 to the Drakesbad region of the park. We'll spend the afternoon exploring the Warner Valley region with its bubbling hot springs, lush meadows and secluded lakes. We'll climb moderately from the valley and visit Devil's Kitchen, one of the most volatile and isolated geothermal areas in the park (5 miles). We'll then head to Chester and our first of two overnights at the Bidwell House.
We're headed for the Lassen's south entrance on Day 2 and an engagement with Brokeoff Mountain in the context of what many consider to be Lassen's finest hike. Though not as high as Lassen Peak and perhaps not quite as dramatic, Brokeoff features excellent hiking through more varied terrain than Lassen, along with a thrilling traverse along its summit ridge. From the summit, the views of Lassen Peak are without equal (7 miles).
Following a second night in Chester, we'll return to the park and the Kings Creek Falls Trailhead for another of the park's exceptional day hikes. From beautiful Lower Meadow, to the wild cascades along Kings Creek, to awesome Kings Creek Falls, finally reaching the secluded basin of Sifford Lake, the Kings Creek hike is awesome (10 miles). We'll spend this night at the Childs Meadow Resort and we promise one of the best home-cooked meals you've ever experienced.
Lassen is a land of countless glacially-sculpted lakes and we'll visit a cluster in the course of our hike planned for Day 4. We'll climb from Summit Lake, initially to Cliff Lake and beyond to Shadow and Terrace Lakes. Shortly beyond Terrace, we'll launch into a long descent along cascading Hat Creek to beautiful Paradise Meadows before reaching trail's end at Hat Lake. We'll then head to the park's western entrance and the Manzanita Lake Museum and Visitor Center on the way to Shingletown and the secluded setting of the Weston House, where we'll spend our final two overnights.
Lest you think that we have no intention of challenging the formidable summit for which this park is named, let us quickly dispel those concerns. We've never bypassed an opportunity for a dramatic touch — why not save the best for last? And so, on Day 5, our final full day, we'll climb Lassen to its spectacular 10,457-foot crest along a trail that, though moderately steep, is well-maintained and non-technical, and ultimately ascends to the rim of the crater. From the summit, the views of Mt. Shasta to the northwest and the Devastated Area on the slopes of Lassen itself are breathtaking (5 miles). Believe it or not, we'll be down from Lassen early enough to picnic along the shores of Lake Helen and then hike through nearby Bumpass Hell, an area of geothermal activity considered to be the park's most colorful and extensive (3 miles).
We may now be into our final day but our Lassen adventure is far from over. We're headed back to Reno when we're finished but we'll return to the park's far northeastern corner on the shores of Butte Lake for a memorable encounter with awesome Cinder Cone. Cinder Cone is yet another product of the same enormous internal geothermal forces that produced Lassen and Brokeoff Peaks, Bumpass Hell and Devil's Kitchen. The first mile of the Cinder Cone trail is a gentle stroll along the edge of the Fantastic Lava Beds of which we have no hint as to their extent until we reach the Cinder Cone rim. The trail's last mile, translating into just shy of 1,000 feet of elevation gain, lends a new meaning to the concept "one step at a time."
The view from the rim, though, is a 360-degree masterpiece. Butte and Snag Lakes, Lassen and Prospect Peaks, the vastness of the Fantastic Lava Beds and the Painted Dunes are ours to behold. And for those who want more, a trail leads down into the bowels of Cinder Cone's crater. What a way to end our week in Lassen! (5 miles)
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