Lassen Volcanic National Park

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Lassen Volcanic National Park is home to steaming fumaroles, meadows freckled with wildflowers, clear mountain lakes, and numerous volcanoes. Jagged peaks tell the story of its eruptive past while hot water continues to shape the land.

Lassen Volcanic offers opportunities to discover the wonder and mysteries of volcanoes and hot water for visitors willing to explore the undiscovered.

Explore the Hydrothermal Areas

Lassen Volcanic National Park Poster

Lassen Volcanic National Park Poster – Buy This

The remarkable hydrothermal features in Lassen Volcanic National Park include roaring fumaroles (steam and volcanic-gas vents), thumping mud pots, boiling pools, and steaming ground.

Water from rain and snow that falls on the highlands of the park feed the hydrothermal system. Once deep underground, the water is heated by a body of hot or molten rock beneath Lassen Peak.

Rising hot water boils to form boiling pools and mud pots. Super-heated steam reaches the surface through fractures in the earth to form fumaroles such as those found at Bumpass Hell and Sulphur Works. These features are related to active volcanism and are indications of the ongoing potential for further eruptions from the Lassen “volcanic center.”

Hydrothermal Area Danger


For your safety, stay on established trails and boardwalks. Ground in hydrothermal areas can look solid but may actually be a thin crust hiding pools of acidic boiling water or mud. Traveling off-trail in these areas may result in severe injury.

Visitors Have Been Injured When Traveling Off-Trail.

A visitor was severely burned in the summer of 2010 after he traveled off-trail in the Devils Kitchen hydrothermal area. He stated that “It feels like I put my leg in a flame.”

On May 5, 2012, a visitor was air-lifted to a regional burn unit after stepping off the sidewalk at Sulphur Works. The ground appeared solid, but she easily broke through a one-inch crust, exposing her foot and ankle to boiling acidic water and mud. 

Bumpass Hell

Access the largest hydrothermal area in the park via a 3-mile round-trip hike. A boardwalk takes visitors through a 16-acre bowl of plopping mudpots, bubbling pools, and roaring steam vents – including the super hot Big Boiler.

Little Hot Springs Valley

Located at the bottom of a steep valley, steam vents can be viewed via the park road with binoculars. There is no trail in this area.

Pilot Pinnacle

There is no trail or parking area for this feature which includes steam vents, boiling pools and mudpots. One part of this area is visible from the park road; “Fart Gulch” is a chalk-colored hillside on the north side of the road near Little Hot Springs Valley. The sulfur smells makes this area easily identifiable. 

Sulphur Works

The park’s most easily accessed hydrothermal area features boiling mudpots and steam vents viewable via a sidewalk. 

Devils Kitchen

A hiking trail in the Warner Valley area leads visitors to this bubbling cauldron. Explore steam vents, mudpots, and boiling pools on a short loop.

Boiling Springs Lake

Accessed from the Warner Valley trailhead, this short hike leads to a bubbling lake with a temperature of the lake around 125 degrees.

Mudpots and steam vents line part of the shore and drainage creeks. Be careful to stay on clearly marked trails in this area as the ground around the lake is unstable; travel in these areas may result in severe injury.

Terminal Geyser

Access this gigantic steam vent from the Warner Valley trailhead. Although not a true geyser, this spurting steam located in the middle of a creek, provides a spectacular show!

Cold Boiling Lake

Enjoy a short hike from the Kings Creek Picnic Area to this quaint lake where “cold boiling” bubbles rise like soda water.

History & Culture

Native Americans

The Lassen area was a meeting point for at least four American Indian groups: Atsugewi, Yana, Yahi, and Maidu. Because of its weather and snow conditions, generally high elevation, and seasonally mobile deer populations, the Lassen area was not conducive to year-round living.

These Native American groups camped here in warmer months for hunting and gathering. Basket makers rather than potters, they left few artifacts other than stone points, knives, and metals. Some of these artifacts are displayed in the Loomis Museum, along with replicas of basketry and hunting devices.

Tribal descendents still live in the area and are valuable partners to the park. Members have worked with the National Park Service to provide cultural demonstrations and to help visitors understand both modern and historical tribal culture.

Ishi: Last of the Yahi

A Yahi Indian named Ishi turned up in Oroville, Calif. in 1911. He never mixed with whites before, and his tribe was thought to be nonexistent.

He lived out his days at the Anthropology Museum of the University of California Affiliated Colleges on Parnassus Heights in San Francisco (now the site of the University of California San Francisco), where he was an invaluable ethnological source.

Ishi was considered the last stone age survivor in the United States. He contracted tuberculosis and died on March 25, 1916 at the medical college on Parnassus. Yahi artifacts and tools created by Ishi can be studied at the University of California Berkelely, Phoebe Hearst Museum of Anthropology.

Emigrants and Pioneers


History here generally describes the period from 1840, even though Jedediah Smith passed through in 1828 on his overland trek to the West Coast. California’s gold rush brought the first settlers.

Two pioneer trails, developed by William Nobles and Peter Lassen, are associated with the park. In 1851, Nobles discovered an alternate route to California, passing through Lassen. Sections of the Lassen and Nobles Emigrant Trail are still visible.

Lassen, for whom the park is named, guided settlers near here and tried to establish a city. Mining, power development projects, ranching, and timbering were all attempted. The area’s early federal protection saved it from heavy logging.

Loomis

Benjamin Franklin Loomis documented Lassen Peak’s most recent eruption cycle and promoted the park’s establishment. He photographed the eruptions, explored geologically, and developed an extensive museum collection. Artifacts and photographs of the 1914-1915 eruption are on display in the Loomis Museum and are accessible.

Lassen Volcanic National Park Administrative History

In August 2016, Lassen Volcanic National Park will celebrate its 100-year anniversary. The fifteenth national park established by Congress, Lassen is one of the oldest national parks in the United States.

The administrative history, completed in September 2010, discusses how the park was conceived and established and how it is managed to the present day. The historical narrative explores Lassen’s unique character and course of development that has led the hidden gem to remain one of the lesser known national parks.

The Supans and Sulphur Works

Mathias B. Supan came to America looking for a new life. He found one in northern California at a place he dubbed Dr. Supan’s Paint Mine, known today as Sulphur Works.

As the area surrounding Sulphur Works became Lassen Volcanic National Park, there was much tension between the Supan family and the park. Both parties saw potential in the Sulphur Works area. In the end, the park was able to purchase what is now a popular stop for visitors to explore Lassen’s most accessible hydrothermal area. 

Plants & Wildlife

Although Lassen is primarily known for its volcanic geology, the park boasts a rich diversity of plant and animal life. Over 700 flowering plant species grace the park, providing shelter and food for 250 vertebrates as well as a host of invertebrates including insects.

This great diversity of life forms is due to two factors: the geographic location of the park and the abundance of habitats that occur there. Situated at the southern end of the Cascade Range geologic province, Lassen Volcanic National Park lies at the crossroads of three great biological provinces: the Cascades range to the north, the Sierra Nevada mountains to the south and the Great Basin desert to the east.

The myriad habitats of Lassen Volcanic National Park are produced by variations in environmental conditions such as elevation (5,000 to 10,457 feet), moisture (precipitation is greater on the western than the eastern side of the park), substrate (rock type and soil depth), temperature, insolation (amount of sun) and prior disturbance (both natural and human-caused).

Lassen Volcanic is home to both native plants and invasive (non-native) species. Native are plants indigenous to the area in geologic time.

This includes plants that have developed, occur naturally, or existed for many years in an area (trees, flowers, grasses, and other plants.

Invasive plants are not native to the park and have a tendancy to spread, possibly causing damage to the existing ecosystem.

Among the greatest threats to Lassen’s plants are climate change, competition with invasive plants, and historical fire suppression.

Not all non-native plants impair the natural landscape through aggressive colonization. Lassen prioritizes the treatment of non-native invasive species according to the size of the infestation as well as the species’ capacity to displace native vegetation and alter ecosystem functionality. Resource managers also factor in their ability to effectively eradicate or control a particular problem area given limited resources. Lassen’s invasive species, listed in order of priority, include:

  • Cheatgrass
  • Bull Thistle
  • Woolly Mullein
  • Canada thistle
  • Oxeye Daisy

Lassen Volcanic National Park is home to approximately 300 species of vertebrates, which includes birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. The richness of species is contributed to the variety of habitats found within Lassen Volcanic National Park.

Most of the park below the 7800 foot level is comprised of mixed conifer forest comprised of white fir, red fir, Jeffrey pine and lodgepole pine. Species that are typically found in these forested areas are black bear, mule deer, marten, brown creeper, mountain chickadee, white-headed woodpecker, long-toed salamander, and a wide variety of bat species.

Above 7800 feet, the habitat becomes one of limited stands of Mountain hemlock. Species that occur here include Clark’s nutcracker, deer mice and various chipmunk species.

Above the Mountain hemlock zone is the subalpine zone which is comprised of very sparse to no vegetation. Species found in this habitat include gray-crowned rosy finch, pika and golden mantled ground squirrel.

Other minor vegetation communities occur in the park. Montane chaparral, in scattered stands, can be found at lower elevations and drier aspects. Dispersed within forest communities, low stands of pinemat manzanita connect individual stands of red fir and lodgepole pine. Species that can be found in these habitats include dark-eyed junco, montane vole, and sagebrush lizard.

Seasonally wet meadows are also common in valley bottoms, along streams and lake margins. Pacific tree frog, Western terrestrial garter snake, common snipe, and mountain pocket gopher can be found in these areas.

Lassen Volcanic National Park has one species that is currently listed as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act (bald eagle) and one that was taken off the endangered species list in 1999 (peregrine falcon).

Lassen Volcanic National Park is also home to a variety of invertebrate species which can be found in all of the habitats listed above. One of the most noticeable species is the California Tortoise Shell butterfly.

These butterflies are orange-brown in color and can be seen by the thousands at times especially on the tops of peaks where wind currents have carried them. These population explosions are believed to be movements from areas that have been defoliated to new areas in search of a food source.

These mass movements can make driving conditions hazardous due to slick pavement and windshields becoming plastered with dead butterflies.

Hat Lake in Lassen Volcanic National Park

Hat Lake in Lassen Volcanic National Park – Buy This

Mammals

Lassen Volcanic National Park is home to approximately 57 species of mammals ranging is size from the tiny shrew to the North American black bear.

These species represent six orders of mammals, Insectivores, Chiroptera (bats), Carnivores, Rodents, Lagomorphs, and hoofed animals. Five species of shrew and two species of mole comprise the Insectivores.

Eight species of bats represent the Chiroptera order. The carnivores are represented by 16 species. Rodents have a total of 23 species, and there is one species of hoofed animal which is the mule deer.

The Order Rodentia includes many common genera. Mice, chipmunks, squirrels, and gophers are its best known members. The order also includes lesser known taxa like voles.

Mice (8 species) and their allies, chipmunks (3 species), and squirrels (6 species) constitute more than half of the rodent species in the park. Most of the remaining genera are represented by only a single species like marmots, aplodontia, and porcupines.

Carnivores are perhaps the most widely recognized group of mammals in Lassen Volcanic National Park. Its members include the American black bear, bobcat, mountain lion, raccoon, coyote, fox, weasel, and skunk.

Lesser known species like the American marten and ringtail are also present. Although grizzly bears once roamed the area, they were extirpated from California when the last individual was shot in the early 1920’s.

There are no Federally listed mammals within Lassen Volcanic National Park and the Sierra Nevada red fox is the only mammal species that is listed as Threatened by the State of California.

The Sierra Nevada snowshoe hare, Sierra Nevada mountain beaver, and the American badger are all considered a species of concern by the State of California.

There is currently a research project being conducted by the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology (MVZ) at University of California, Berkeley to resurvey areas that were originally surveyed for mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles in the mid to late 1920’s by Joseph Grinnell of the MVZ. This re-survey project will lend important information regarding habitat and species variation over the past 90 years.

A study was conducted by a Graduate Student from University of California at Berkeley on the ecology of the Sierra Nevada red fox after this species was detected near the park in 1996. The Lassen region is one of the few areas in the Sierra Nevada and Cascade mountain ranges where this species occurs.

Fish

A survey of lakes and streams was conducted in 2004 for fish and amphibians. This survey detected nine species of fish of which five are native to parts of California.

Native species include rainbow trout, tui chub, speckled dace, Lahontan redside and Tahoe sucker.

Brook trout, Brown trout, golden shiner, and fathead minnow are all species that are non-native to the park that were detected during this survey.

Fish stocking occurred prior to the park being established in 1916. Most of the lakes in the park were stocked with rainbow, brown, and brook trout. It is suspected that the golden shiner and fathead minnow were introduced as bait that was used by fishermen and escaped.

Due to National Park Service policy, all stocking of fish was halted in the park and currently most of the lakes where these fish were planted are currently fishless due to lack of suitable spawning grounds.

Butte Lake, Snag Lake, and Horseshoe Lake are all popular fishing destinations in the park with populations of rainbow, brown, and brook trout. Kings Creek and Grassy Swale Creek both have populations of brook trout as well.

The most popular fishing lake in the park, however, is Manzanita Lake. This lake holds a fair number of rainbow and brown trout and is rated as a blue ribbon fly fishery by the state of California Department of Fish and Game. It is managed as a catch and release fishery with only single barbless hooks allowed.

No bait such as worms, salmon eggs or powerbait may be used. This lake is nationally known for its fly fishing opportunities.

Birds

Lassen Volcanic National Park provides habitat for approximately 216 species of birds in which 96 have been known to breed in the park. Most of the species that occur in the park are Neotropical migrants. These birds use the park in summer to breed and forage and then fly to Central and South America to spend the winter.

Several monitoring programs are currently underway within the park. The park has one MAPS (Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship) bird banding station that was established in 1997.

This station is one of many established throughout the United States to provide information on bird reproduction and survivorship.

According to data from this bird banding station, survival estimates for MacGillivray’s Warbler, Wilson’s Warbler and Song Sparrow are higher in Lassen Volcanic National Park than the Northwest Regional average. This shows the importance of Lassen Volcanic National Park to these migratory songbirds.

The park has one bald eagle territory and one peregrine falcon aerie which are monitored annually. A park-wide survey for the California spotted owl in 2005 and 2006 led to the discovery of four pairs of California spotted owls which are monitored annually. The park monitors Northern goshawk nests annually as well.

The park also monitors bufflehead duck populations. Lassen Volcanic National Park is one of the few areas this duck breeds in Northern California.

Clark’s nutcracker and whitebark pine have a unique symbiotic relationship to one another.

The Clark’s nutcracker uses the seeds of whitebark pine as a food source and in return the nutcracker helps disperse whitebark pine seeds it caches for food.

The nutcracker caches seeds by burying them in the ground. If the nutcracker forgets a cache of seeds they will begin sprouting the next summer.

Amphibians & Reptiles

Six amphibian and six reptile species inhabit Lassen Volcanic National Park. They are often considered together because both are poikilotherms, animals that lack the ability to generate their own body heat, relying instead on their environment to regulate body temperature.

Amphibians spend the early part their life cycle in water as larva before metamorphosing into adults that live on land. Toads are a good example. As tadpoles, they are restricted to aquatic environments, but spend almost all of their time on land as adults. In contrast, reptiles are generally terrestrial throughout their life cycle.

Amphibians are also characterized by moist, highly vascularized skin while reptiles are typically covered by scales.

Lassen’s amphibians can be divided into two groups – anurans and caudates. Anurans are frogs and toads. Caudates include newts and salamanders which have tails and resemble lizards in appearance.

Caudate amphibians spend most of the year hidden to avoid the heat. They live under rocks and rotten logs or underground in damp crevices and burrows and typically emerge in autumn after the first soaking rain.

Lassen’s lone newt species, the rough skinned newt, is the park’s most visible caudate. They move like a lizard in slow motion and are often observed in early spring crossing roads or trails on their way to breed in streams.

Lassen’s anurans include the western toad and two species of frogs. The most common frog species is the ubiquitous Pacific treefrog. Found at nearly all elevations in nearly all habitats, this diminutive frog is the species most often heard calling around meadows and ponds in the spring.

The other frog species is the Cascades frog. This species was once prevalent in the park but now only a few remain. The reason for the decline is unknown and further studies are needed to determine the causes for the decline.

In marked contrast to the amphibian’s preference for moist, damp habitats, reptiles prefer dry, rocky places. Lassen’s reptile fauna can be divided into two groups – lizards, and snakes. The three lizard and four snake species are seen at varying degrees of frequency.

The sagebrush lizard can be seen in drier habitats climbing on rocks and heard skittering through dry leaves. The Northern and Southern alligator lizards are usually difficult to see due to their nature of hiding under rocks and logs.

The four snake species that are known to occur in the park are the rubber boa, Western terrestrial garter snake, common garter snake, and the striped whipsnake. Very little is known about the reptiles in Lassen Volcanic National Park and more research is needed to learn more about the habits and number of reptile species that occur in the park.