Planning Your Time

Lassen Volcanic in One Day

Start your day early at the park's northwest entrance, accessible via Highway 44 from Redding. Make a stop at the Loomis Museum, where you can view exhibits before taking the easy, ½-mile loop Lily Pond Nature Trail. Back at the museum, drive or walk to Manzanita Lake. Take a mid-morning break and pick up supplies at the Camper Store for a picnic lunch before taking the park highway toward Lassen Peak. As you circle the peak on its northern flank, you come upon Devastated Area, testimony to the damage done by the 1915 eruptions. Continue to Summit Lake, where you can picnic and swim, or to Kings Creek, an area of lush meadows where you can hike to Kings Creek Falls. Allow at least two hours to make the 3-mile round-trip hike, which ends in a 700-foot ascent to the falls. If time permits, continue to the Sulphur Works to stroll sidewalks that skirt sulfur-emitting steam vents.