Our summer RV trip started in Mount Lassen National Park. The drive from the San Francisco Bay Area was good. From Redding, there is a steep climb up to Shingletown where the Mt Lassen KOA is located. There is not much in the area, so be sure to bring everything you need!
We drove the next morning to Lassen Volcanic National Park. What a beautiful place!
We went on a hike around the lake on a mostly paved trail. From the path, we were treated to several views of the lake and mountain.
Take a picnic lunch or get some food from the camp store and plan to spend a few hours here.
The next day we drove to a part of the park on the Eastern slope of Mount Lassen called Devastated Area. In 1915 the mountain erupted, leveling trees and sending ash and boulders over the area. The boulder in this photo (over 8 feet high) was thrown from the mountain to this spot! There is a good interpretive trail that describes the event.
Our main reason for going here was to ride our bikes along the main road. It was closed to traffic as they were still clearing the road from winter storms. However, bikes were allowed to go as far as they wanted. We enjoyed several miles of empty road.
Eventually, the road became too obstructed to go further,
But we made it to a small patch of snow and made a little snowman.
Since the road was closed, this was the end of our trip to Lassen Volcanic National Park. The best parts are on the other side so we decided we’d plan a trip here to enjoy the rest of the park soon.
Our final day in the area was spent in McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park. The falls are unique in that most of the water comes from an underground river flowing from the mountain in a layer of fractured rock. It is really beautiful to see the broad band of water flowing out of the rock.
We hiked around the falls on both sides along the Burney Creek, which flows into Lake Britton.
Our final view of the falls included a perpetual rainbow created by the mist. Yep, we stayed here awhile enjoying the beauty and the coolness.
It was time to leave Mount Lassen. I was a little concerned about the steep drive back down to Redding. The first mile was a 9% grade, followed by 2 miles of 7% grade with a sharp curve at the end. However, I just took it slow and it was fine. After filling up with gas at the Redding Costco, we were on to the next leg of our summer trip.
Here we are passing Black Butte on I-5.
And viewing Mount Shasta from Highway 97.
The drive on Highway 97, part of the Volcanic Legacy Scenic Highway, is really beautiful, so take your time and enjoy the view.
In just a few hours we made it to Klamath Falls, OR. We only stayed one night here, but intend to spend a few days next time. We stayed at RJourney, a new and very nice RV Park. As you can see, many sites have views of the Lake.
Our next stop is Bend OR, where we stayed a week.
Al & Deb
MobileMosers.com 
Leave a comment