Lassen Volcanic National Park

California has eight National Parks, including the largest in the Lower 48 and perhaps the most famous of all Parks. But overlook Lassen Volcanic at your own peril, because this park has been around for a long time, and it’s still giving!

We rolled into LAVO after dark, but it was still obvious that parts of the park had been ravaged by wildfires not long before. In certain spot, charred forest was all we could see. Somehow the Summit Lake Campground had been spared, and we were very grateful to have this place as home for a few nights.

First morning in the park, and we were up bright and early to hike the 5-mile, 2,000’+ route up Lassen Peak. This was not an easy hike for the girls, but one they were determined to make. Not only did they make the snow-capped summit, which offered magnificent 360-degree views, but they also felt perhaps more accomplished then any other hike we’d done in the parks. They were true mountaineers, bagging their summit.

After the hike, we did a driving tour of the south end of the park, hitting Sulphur Works, Bumpass Hell, Kings Creek Meadow, Emerald Lake, and Lake Helen.

The next day, we headed north to the Loomis Museum and Manzanita Lake, where our noses made their way to the sweet butterscotch smell of the Jeffery Pines. We toured the Devastated Area which hightlighted a volcanic eruption just over 100 years ago. And then we returned to camp to rest.

Our camping neighbors lent us some kayaks, which we used to explore Summit Lake — a literally stones throw from our campsite. The stars were beyond clear that night, and we could see the Milky Way.

Our time at Lassen wasn’t long, but it was enjoyable and full of accomplishments. Don’t overlook this park!