lassen
Yesterday we got up early to make the 3.5 hour drive up to Lassen Volcanic National Park. The last time we went was in August of 2003, and we weren't able to do much hiking back then since David was still unable to walk much on his own. We had gone about a year before David was born, and did alot of hiking that time, but that was about 5 years ago, so its been a while.
The drive up (and back) is mostly very very boring California Central Valley scenery, so there's just so much endless agrarian fields you can look at before it all blends together.
As usual, I took alot of pictures, some came out well, a few are kinda boring and/or crappy. I think my two favorites are these two. The first was taken of the dried mud near one of the thermal pools at Bumpass Hell. The 2nd was David cheesing it up for the camera just in front of Lake Helen (and that's the base of Mount Lassen in the background).
The last time we did the 3 mile (roundtrip) hike to Bumpass Hell, I remembered it being an endurance test. The \~7000ft elevation of the trail, combined with relatively warm temperatures made it especially difficult that time. I was battling altitude headaches, and shortness of breath. This time was the complete opposite. We had no problems at all hiking out, and the only somewhat difficult part was the hike back (which had a fairly steep series of uphill switchbacks. I was also a bit concerned that David would have problems with the hike, but he was fine. I think the perfect weather (it was in the 60s, and breezy) helped alot to keep us cool, and the elevation didn't bother me at all. I'm not sure if I'm just in better shape these days or what, but both at Yosemite & now at Lassen I'm able to do hikes that were difficult in the past.
After the bumpass hike, we drove around the bend to Lake Helen, which was gorgeous. That lake has always been especially pretty, as the water is very clear (and cold), and it reflects Mount Lassen well.
Oh, and yes, the big white patches in the photos are snow. In september. And no, its not fresh snow, but unmelted snow from last winter. Most years, Lassen doesn't get all their main roads cleared of snow until June or even July. Its now going down into the upper 30F's at night in Lassen, so its doubtful that all the remaining snow will melt off before new snow starts falling in a month or two. David was super excited seeing the snow, and didn't pass up an opportunity to touch it and inform us that it was cold.
I also created three jumbo panoramas from some of the pictures, and they're available here. The first & third are basically the same lanscape, taken from different points along the trail to Bumpass Hell. The peak just right of center is 9235ft Brokeoff Mountain. On the far right is 9087ft Mount Diller. The 2nd panorama is one of the larger thermal pools in Bumpass Hell itself. The landscapes were created using Hugin. I used this guide as a basic tutorial.