Lassen, NP Vacation Part I

This year was a special year for me. I was able to visit Lassen, NP not once, but three times this summer. My dad and I went in early June for a day hike. My friend Bethany and I went camping for four days in late June, and my dad and I went camping for a weekend in mid September.

For the first trip in early June, Papa and I hiked out to Mill Creek Falls in the southwestern portion of the park. We started out late morning and hiked in. The hike in was hilly and warm, but nice mixture of green sub-alpine meadows and airy forests. We lunched with our toes in the creek above the falls (there are actually two creeks that flow together to create the falls).

In all our trips to the park, I had never been to Mill Creek Falls, and it was a lovely sight well worth the 3.8 miles round trip. At nearly 100 feet, it’s the highest falls in the park.

After hiking back, we drove up the road to Lake Helen near the summit of Mt. Lassen. It still had snow and ice covering part of the lake, while back at home saw a record breaking heat wave. It was nice to enjoy the glorious view of the mountain before driving back home.

(P.S. Some of these photos were taken with my iPhone, so I apologize for the slightly inferior quality.)