Lassen Volcanic
Steaming hydrothermal areas, a climbable volcano and alpine lakes in Northern California
- Hours
- Open 24 hours, all year
- Entry
- $30 per car
- Reservations
- Not required
- Size
- 106,452 acres
Lassen Volcanic Weather Now
Loading the forecast for Lassen Volcanic…
Lassen Volcanic is one of the few places on Earth where you can see all four types of volcanoes: plug dome, shield, cinder cone and composite. Lassen Peak erupted from 1914 to 1917, and the park was created in 1916 while it was still active. The landscape still shows the scars of those eruptions, especially in the Devastated Area along the park highway. Underground heat feeds boiling pools, mudpots and steam vents across the park.
Most visitors drive the 30-mile park highway, which climbs past Lake Helen to about 8,500 feet, the highest point of any road in the Cascades. Snow piles up to 30 to 40 feet near the road each winter, so crews often need weeks to plow it open in spring. The 2021 Dixie Fire burned a large part of the east side of the park, and you will still see its effects at Juniper Lake and Warner Valley. Lassen gets far fewer visitors than Yosemite, so trails stay fairly quiet even in summer.
The park and surrounding area
- Park boundary
- Other parks
- Major highway
- Road
- Rivers and lakes
- Town
Plan your trip
- Best time to go
- July through early October is best, when the highway and high trails are usually snow-free and the campgrounds are open.
- How long to stay
- One full day covers the main highway stops; two or three days lets you climb Lassen Peak and visit Butte Lake.
- Getting there
- Redding (RDD) is about an hour from the northwest entrance; Reno (RNO) and Sacramento (SMF) are each about 3 hours away by car.
- Wildlife
- Look for black-tailed deer, black bears, golden-mantled ground squirrels, pikas in rocky areas, Clark's nutcrackers and Steller's jays.
Plan and book
Some links below are affiliate links. If you book through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. How this works
Where to stay
- Hotels in Chester (opens in a new tab)California
- Hotels in Mineral (opens in a new tab)California
- Hotels in Redding (opens in a new tab)California
- Lodges inside the park (opens in a new tab)Official NPS list
Tours and activities
- Guided tours on Viator (opens in a new tab)Day trips, wildlife, photography
- Tours on GetYourGuide (opens in a new tab)Compare options and reviews
- Campsites on Recreation.gov (opens in a new tab)Official federal booking site
What to pack for Lassen Volcanic
- Trekking polesThe Bumpass Hell and Lassen Peak trails have steep, sometimes snowy sections.
- MicrospikesSnowfields often linger on high trails into summer and come back with early fall storms.
- Warm layersTemperatures drop fast above 8,000 feet, even on summer afternoons.
- Sun protectionHigh elevation and bare volcanic slopes mean strong sun with little shade.
- Offline mapCell service is limited or missing in most of the park.
A first day, start to finish
- Manzanita Lake loop
- Devastated Area and Hot Rock
- Lake Helen viewpoint
- Bumpass Hell hike
- Sulphur Works mudpots
Don't miss
- Lassen PeakA steep 5-mile round trip with about 2,000 feet of climbing to the 10,457-foot summit of one of the largest plug dome volcanoes in the world; snow can linger on the trail well into summer.
- Bumpass HellA 2.8-mile round trip to the park's largest hydrothermal area, with boardwalks over boiling pools, mudpots and steaming vents.
- Sulphur WorksRoadside bubbling mudpots and steam vents right next to the park highway near the southwest entrance, an easy stop with almost no walking.
- Manzanita LakeA flat 1.8-mile loop around a lake near the northwest entrance with classic reflections of Lassen Peak, plus kayaking and fishing.
- Cinder ConeA 4-mile round trip from Butte Lake that ends with a loose, steep climb up a 700-foot cinder cone overlooking the colorful Painted Dunes.
Know before you go
Do
- Check the park's road status before you go in fall, because the first big storm can close the highway for the season.
- Stay on boardwalks and marked trails in hydrothermal areas, where the ground can be thin crust over boiling water.
- Start the Lassen Peak hike early and carry layers, water and traction if snow remains on the trail.
Don't
- Touch the water or mud in hydrothermal areas, which can be hot enough to cause severe burns.
- Plan to drive through the park in winter, since the highway is closed between the two visitor areas.
- Build campfires outside allowed rings, and check for fire restrictions, which were in effect in summer 2026.
The park is open 24 hours a day, year-round, but the 30-mile park highway (Highway 89) closes to through traffic with the first big snowstorm, usually in late October or November (it closed October 24 in 2025), and stays closed until spring plowing is done; it opened May 22 in 2026. Kohm Yah-mah-nee Visitor Center near the southwest entrance is open daily 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and the Loomis Museum at Manzanita Lake is open Thursday through Monday through November 2, 2026.
Drive the park highway from Manzanita Lake to the southwest entrance in the morning, then catch sunset back at Manzanita Lake for the reflection of Lassen Peak.Trekker's tip