Lassen Volcanic National Park

27-May-2013 • Redding, California United States

After visiting the Sundial Bridge and the Shasta Dam on the first day of our long Memorial Day weekend, we set out to explore a National Park named the Lassen Volcanic National Park just outside of Redding.

This was a mural we saw on the wall of a diner right next to a gasoline station where Marc had to gas up. Actually, it was located on the same street as the La Quinta Inn and Suites. Given that we were deep in the valleys of Northern California, it was no surprise to see art about bears. Bears after all, populate this area of our state. Actually, we saw deers too and we didn't have to seek them out. We saw them in numbers by the freeway.

Anyway, I had no idea what Lassen was about. I didn't have any idea what we were going to see since I did not read up on the place prior to our trip. Marc did all that this time. I was pleasantly surprised to see how beautiful it was. The admission to the park was just $10 per car and that was even good for 7 days. Now I realize why Americans really love visiting National Parks all over the country. They are definitely natural jewels worthy of all the care and preservation we can afford them for us and for the succeeding generations.

The seismograph building next to the Lassen Museum and Information Center

A few minutes after entry, visitors usually drop by the Loomis Museum and Information Center near the Manzanita Lake.

The plaque indicating the Loomis Museum inside the Lassen Volcanic National Park

The Museum and information Center, Lassen National Park

An exhibit inside the Loomis Museum

A preserved Great Horned Owl inside the Loomis Museum, one of the many exhibits about animals, rocks, art, and people from area

Among the exhibits inside the museum was some info about a Native American who lived in the area. It was Ishi!

As a school teacher, I first learned about Ishi from a practice test I used to help prepare my students for the yearly California State Tests in April. I actually had to do some research about him on the net. What I thought was a fictitious character turned out to be a real live individual who lived in Northern California late 1800s to the early 1900s.

Ishi fishing at Deer Creek, 1914

One of the big pictures on display inside the Loomis Museum was the eruption of Lassen Volcano in 1914.

This is a hardened lava shaped in a rock also called a Lava Bomb.

Some trees that grew in the forests of Lassen

I can no longer remember how many times we drove, stopped to take pictures, explored sights, and stood in awe of our natural surroundings. It was simply breathtaking

With the volcano nearby, there was bound to be volcanic rock. This was granite. Yep, the same rock consumers go ga-ga over for their kitchen countertops.

More granite

This was a tree we believe fell just recently. It still had branches with very green pine needles on them

What a view!

We passed by this pile of rocks which seem to have fallen on one side of a mountain in a landslide.

Here is a view of the Lassen Volcano which has been dormant for nearly 100 years now. Many seismologists do not believe it is dead. They think it is simply sleeping.

The peak of the Lassen Volcano which erupted in 1914

Another view of the same part of the Lassen Volcano that erupted in 1914.

A full view of the Lassen Volcano from afar

The snow capped Brokeoff Mountains

At a rest stop with a view of the snow capped Brokeoff Mountains in the very far background

A very serene lake in Lassen

Just a year ago, Marc and I were at the San Jacinto National Park in Palm Springs which was completely covered with snow in late spring. Now here we were a few hours away from San Francisco also in late spring and the Lassen Volcanic National Park still had feet and feet of snow all over the place. It was surreal!

Here is Marc playing with the snow he desperately sought to escape from in the winter season while growing up in the East Coast

Another view of Brokeoff Mountain

Marc actually parked the car in the middle of the road to take a picture of the many feet of snow that had piled up on both sides of the road. He just couldn't believe its presence even in late May. Folks, summer is just around the corner and there was still snow.

Get a load of this pack of snow.

A frozen lake at Lassen. This actually looked like a lake within a crater of a volcano. To take this picture, I actually had to stand on a mountain of snow.

I love this picture. I have always wanted it to snow in San Francisco. I guess that will never ever happen. Now that I know that Lassen is a mere 4 hour drive from the city, we shall return.

The area in the middle covered with snow is named Bumpass Hell.

Bumpass Hell is made up of mud pots, boiling springs, and steam vents. When the snow is gone, there are actually wooden bridges people can walk on and walk through to explore the area up close.

What a twig! This is the spot where visitors took a picture of Bumpass Hell.

A boulder on Bumpass Hell

Just like always, I had to beg Marc to pose for the camera. He is just so camera shy.

The sulphur spring at Lassen. Sulphur, as is always the case, has a very strong pungent smell. More like human gas, to put it mildly.

We planned on eating lunch in the tiny restaurant close to the park's South Exit. There were too many people waiting to be served though and thus we decided to leave and eat somewhere else instead. ON the way to the parking lot, we saw this mini amphitheater.

Christmas trees, anyone? These pine trees all lined up in a straight line reminded me of the Christmas tree lots we saw all over cities and towns during the holiday season.

I am so thankful for this wonderful vacation. I really enjoyed our stay in Redding. I hope to visit more National Parks soon. Perhaps, Yellowstone next time.