Day 84 – Wednesday, Aug. 16

PCT Mile 1,338.2 to PCT Mile 1,363.4, just outside of Lassen NP
Day Total: 25.2 miles

Today we walked all the way through Lassen Volcanic National Park!

We had seen Mount Lassen for several days towering over the other smaller mountains around it. I had been looking forward to the park for a while because some people say it's like a miniature Yellowstone. Today we got to see why.

This year Lassen started requiring backpackers to have a bear canister and unfortunately we had sent ours to a friend 300 miles back after leaving Yosemite, because it wasn't required anymore. Our options were to have it mailed back to us, to camp in the national park campground four miles north of the park boundary, or to hike the 19.3 PCT miles through the park in one day.

We chose the third option. It made for a pretty long day, but enjoyable nonetheless.

The highlights were seeing Terminal Geyser and Boiling Lake. Terminal Geyser isn't really a geyser. It's a steam vent, but it's an impressive steam vent. And Boiling Lake has dramatic green and pink colors that make it look extraterrestrial. It really did feel like we were back in Yellowstone!

We hiked past several pretty lakes, which broke up the monotony of burned forests, and went for a delightful afternoon swim in Lower Twin Lake.

We got to the park boundary and hiked a few more minutes to find a good campsite among the burned trees. My only regret is that we didn't have more time to spend in Lassen Volcanic National Park.

I guess I'll add Lassen to the long list of places along the trail where I'd like to spend more time!