Lassen Environs, Sept 14, 2023
Having exhausted what there is to see in Lassen yesterday, we moved slightly beyond the borders of the park to visit Subway Cave, a 1/3-mile long lava tube. And yes, it was entirely pitch black devoid of any light whatsoever when our headlamps were switched off, then on to …
…Burney Falls, which was astounding. Fed by crystal-clear spring water so as to be fully running in all its splendor even during the fall drought, these falls were simply amazing. Theodore Roosevelt called them the eighth wonder of the world. While not quite that spectacular, still they were worth the hour drive and the mile walk to observe them. And finally we visited the northeastern spur of Lassen National Park for…
...a hike up to the top of Cinder Cone. Aaron is still nursing a strained muscle from our nasty Enchantments hike three weeks ago, so he patiently sat this one out. After a mile walk through a ponderosa pine forest along a 1850’s immigrant trail, I arrived at the ever-so-impossibly steep cinder cone and made it another 0.8 mile straight up to the top. It was grueling since the route is along slippery cinder. But the 360-degree view from the top was well worth the climb, and one could see high alpine lakes, The Fantastic Lava Beds, and The Painted Dunes below.
Finally to clinch an already perfect day, we set out blankets in the middle of the road so as to observe
the night sky. With the perfect ingredients in place (high elevation, clear skies, a designated Dark Sky environment without any light pollution, and no moon), conditions were ripe for the best night sky viewing we’ve ever enjoyed. The constellations were brilliant, and the Milky Way stretched across the sky from horizon to horizon in stunning milky array. We just laid there in the inky darkness holding hands gawking at the universe above.
…Burney Falls, which was astounding. Fed by crystal-clear spring water so as to be fully running in all its splendor even during the fall drought, these falls were simply amazing. Theodore Roosevelt called them the eighth wonder of the world. While not quite that spectacular, still they were worth the hour drive and the mile walk to observe them. And finally we visited the northeastern spur of Lassen National Park for…
...a hike up to the top of Cinder Cone. Aaron is still nursing a strained muscle from our nasty Enchantments hike three weeks ago, so he patiently sat this one out. After a mile walk through a ponderosa pine forest along a 1850’s immigrant trail, I arrived at the ever-so-impossibly steep cinder cone and made it another 0.8 mile straight up to the top. It was grueling since the route is along slippery cinder. But the 360-degree view from the top was well worth the climb, and one could see high alpine lakes, The Fantastic Lava Beds, and The Painted Dunes below.
the night sky. With the perfect ingredients in place (high elevation, clear skies, a designated Dark Sky environment without any light pollution, and no moon), conditions were ripe for the best night sky viewing we’ve ever enjoyed. The constellations were brilliant, and the Milky Way stretched across the sky from horizon to horizon in stunning milky array. We just laid there in the inky darkness holding hands gawking at the universe above.
Wow, wow, wow. God sure puts on a marvelous display at night.
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