September 26
Today was fun. I met many people on the Bumpass Hell trail, including a family of six from Germany, and 15 or so youngsters (with chaperones) who were on a field trip. They live in the area and were enjoying the park’s sweet sulphur smell. If you want to experience that unforgettable rotten egg smell due to hydrogen sulfide, this is one place to breath deep. A boardwalk goes most of the length of the main viewing area. Some higher viewing points are provided to get a better feel for the entire 15-acre Martian-looking landscape. This spot cannot be seen while driving in your car, so you have to park and hike the 1.5-miles over a summit and then down 250-feet to the boardwalk.
Earlier in the day I had parked at the Bumpass Hell parking lot, waiting for the 12 PM opening of the main park road between this spot and the park’s VC. Sulphur Works lies between the two points and the sidewall walk section collapsed in May, compromising the road. The NPS will close the road from 8 AM to noon, and 1 PM to 5 PM, until Mother Nature throws enough snow at the park to shut down the operations. While waiting I had a pleasant talk with a couple from Vancouver, British Colombia. They thought the temps and slight wind made for a cold chill. I commented they would feel differently if they were on top of Lassen Peak. They said they were headed that way.
I had started my trek to the summit of the park’s namesake at 9 AM, taking 2.5 hours to cover the 5 miles, and 2,000-foot climb. Fog was rolling through the trailhead parking lot even though the weather forecast had said this would be a sunny day. The car’s thermometer read 32F deg. Nothing like hiking through banks of fog. But that did not last. At around 9,500-foot elevation (the summit is 10,500 feet). the fog did not reach higher. But the wind which was pushing the vapor went into overdrive. A man who stopped to talk with me estimated the speed at 50mph. I concurred. It was horrendous. So, on the switchbacks, when we went northeast direction we got an extra push. But each 180-degree turn to the southwest had us fighting more than just the elevation change. Towards the top the slope became less, but the entire ground was more like an ice rink than a dirt forest path. Finally, at the top and the view was awesome+++. The fog was below and only to the east (which was the side of the volcano the trail was on). For today the peak was above the top of the clouds. One could see for miles to the west and north. A couple of snowfields were hanging on to existence, and I think they will make it to the next snowfall. The volcano last erupted in 1914. A couple days ago when I was in Alturas, I was reading the local newspaper. The front page had an article about recent earthquake activity in northern California, up to 3.4 on the Richter scale. Locals were concerned these seismic rumblings would trigger Lassen Peak to repeat its 1914 explosion. But the USGS was interviewed, with comments that the monitoring systems they use showed no changes based on the earthquakes; all is safe.
As I had entered the park in the morning at Manzanita Lake, I saw signs saying prescribed burns were in progress and not to report them. One could see the smoke billowing on a hillside. I did see the one required pika during the Lassen Peak hike. Plenty of Golden Mantle Chipmunks, many looking as they were expecting handouts. One deer, and a few Stellar Jays. Otherwise, no other animals. That Dixie Fire from 2021 probably impacted the presence of many animals in the park.