Castle Crags State Park

From McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park it's a short drive to another of California's gems: Castle Crags State Park. The drive passes through the largest National Forest in California--Shasta-Trinity National Forest. The jagged giant Mt. Shasta, clad in snow, looms in the distance; at times it seems the road is headed straight into the mountain! Great pictures...

Upon reaching Interstate 5, one turns south and crosses into Shasta County. Day visiting is easy at Castle Crags State Park. After paying your fee, a short uphill drive brings you to a parking lot and trail head. It's a few minutes walk through a pine forest to a picnic area and vista point. No need for binoculars, free viewfinders are mounted in position to see both Mt. Shasta and the Crags.

Hint: Put your iPhone on the telescope for awesome pictures and video of Castle Crags and Mt. Shasta!

McArthur Burney Falls Memorial State Park

From the south entrance of Lassen Volcanic National Park there is a scenic byway to Lake Almanor. From what I saw, the lake itself is little more than a large mud puddle. However the road passes through 3 of California's less visited counties: Tehama, Plumas, and Lassen. This area is essentially where the Sierra Nevada Mountains die out and the Cascade Range begins...

The scenic byway makes a wide circle around LVNP and swings north to McArthur Burney Falls Memorial State Park. MB Falls is 129 feet tall, the sixth largest waterfall in the USA. It is spring-fed from above and within the falls; never dry even in summer...it pours 100-million gallons of water per day! Teddy Roosevelt called McArthur-Burney Falls the eighth wonder of the world.

The park has camping and a visitor center with store. Unfortunately being late in the season, both the store and visitor center are closed until spring. There are some 3-5 miles of hiking trails to the park. However most visitors simply walk to the falls overlook, take a few pictures, then down a short path to the base of McArthur-Burney Falls. Like a mini-Niagra, a cold mist envelopes you at the bottom of the falls. The temperature there is a constant 65 degrees even in summer.

Lava Beds National Park

I couldn't get enough of this place...one day turned into two! There is quite a bit of exploring to do at Lava Beds National Park. The park is most famous for it's lava tubes which are essentially underground tunnels formed by ancient lava flows, hollowed-out before hardening. They are perfect for beginner spelunking!

LBNP's above ground features are just as interesting: lava beds that stretch for miles, dormant shield volcanoes and cinder cones, one of the largest petroglyphs panels in the USA--even a Native American lava fortress known as Captain Jack's Stronghold. There, a band of 60 Modoc warriors held off the US Army in the Modoc War of 1872-73...Despite being outnumbered ten to one!

Just south of the park is Medicine Lake and Glass Mountain. Medicine Lake is the caldera left behind from an ancient volcanic eruption. The water is very clean and great for swimming. Nearby Glass Mountain has some of the purest obsidian lava flows in the world. A short walk from the road leads to hills of solid black glass. I've never seen anything quite like it!

Bordering the park to the north is the Klamath Basin Wildlife Refuges. These important wetlands (such as Tule Lake) are on the Pacific Flyway. It's an essential winter roost for millions of waterfowl. Countless species of birds come from as far north as Canada on their southerly winter migration. Thousands of predatory birds such as bald eagles can also be seen here in the winter months. Though being a bit early in late October, all I saw were some ducks...still the KBWR visitor center had a great video and displays...

Lassen Volcanic National Park

Made it to Bumpass Hell just after sunset. A snowy and muddy trail passed through the heart of an ancient caldera at the foot of Mt. Lassen, eventually leading to a geothermal inferno of bubbling mudpots, fumeroles, and sulphur vents...White steam hissed into a pink and golden sky, bleeding into a deep red which oulined a rim of jagged peaks on the horizon--all that is left of the ancient Mt. Tehama--ten thousand years ago, a thousand feet taller than Lassen...My camera had just enough battery life to snap one quick picture at the overlook. I descended the last embankment of gray clay mud to the caldera. As I circled the vents, the smell of sulphur and frequent blasts of steam alternated slapping me in the face with a crisp alpine breeze--made all the more intense as I panted out of breath...I took the last snow from my pocket and let it melt slowly down my throat. 98.7 degrees F seems tepid compared to the 350+ degrees boiling under the boardwalk below...There's little time to linger as the wind begins to howl. I started back up the trail guided by what little light remains under the fingernail moon. The snow on both sides--and sometimes on--the trail providing more of a guide. Across the caldera I faintly saw the headlights of a BMW twinkling...Half a Subway sandwhich (and full rack of smoked ribs) later, arrangements were made to return for sunrise...

Northeastern California

I'm planning my first foray through northeastern California. Rain and snow from the first winter storm has finally cleared. However the road through Lassen Volcanic National Park is still closed. PLOW! BABY, PLOW!

Here is a video of the intended route:

Crater Lake National Park (Oregon)

I know what you're thinking...Oregon? Isn't this blog supposed to be about California??

Yes dear readers, it is. I am now ten months into my Californian Odyssey. During which time, I've criss-crossed the state. So far I've visited every major region of the state with the exception of Gold Country. But there is much more exploring to do. And with winter fast approaching I'm not wasting any time.

I arrived at my present location after traveling up the California coast. I traveled through the Redwood National & State Parks to Crescent City in Del Norte County. Next, Hwy 199 to southern Oregon.

My timing could not have been more perfect. Mediterranean climate and evergreen forests gave way to an autumn in full swing. Just over the border was my first stop: Oregon Caves National Monument. Deep in the Siskiyou Mountains, OCNM is a system of caverns of the rarer marble kind (less than 5 percent of all caverns).

From there I settled in the metro area of Medford. The next day I was able to visit Crater Lake National Park. None too soon, as the first winter storm moved in that night, closing the rim drive around the crater. Crater Lake was formed from the implosion of an ancient volcano after it spewed so much lava it's underbelly hollowed-out! With no inlet or outlet, the rain fed lake is considered the purest large body of water in the world. The aquamarine color of the water is a beautiful contrast with the surrounding mountains and trees. I plan to see the lake's landscape covered with snow before leaving Oregon.