After leaving Mt. Rainier National Park, I had the bright idea to drive down the Oregon coast and camp along the way. My first stop was the quaint town of Florence. The one drawback was that everything was covered in fog. I patiently sat in this lovely coffee shop, drinking
Latte's and working on my pictures while waiting for the fog to clear.
Old pilings line the riverbank; the remains of the original ferry landing. The fog is resting so beautifully upon the bridge, trees, coastline and unfortunately upon all my plans.
Small bird boxes rest in the pilings of the old ferry, inhabited by many inquisitive little birds!
After a while, I got in my car and started driving past miles and miles of sand dunes covered with
ATV's and dirt bikes, hoping the fog would lift off the Oregon coast; but alas it was still hiding in the mist. I
abruptly changed course and
started driving to Lassen Volcanic National Park and on the way found this awesome spot to swim at Bear Creek. Very cool, very relaxing!
At last I made it to Lassen; a beautiful park filled with frozen lakes, smoking fumaroles, volcanic mountains, rivers, lakes and snow covered Lassen Peak. The peak in this picture is actually called
Brokeoff Mountain!
My first campsite at
Manzanita Lake was crowded but also near the lake. Early in the morning I went down to the Lake and watched Osprey, Ravens, a Bald Eagle, wild geese and songbirds flying and squawking and singing all at the same time.
Parts of Lassen Volcanic National Park were completely snow covered, with just bits of ground exposed by the
snowmelt showing through.
Lake Helen in Lassen Volcanic National Park was just beginning to melt, exposing the beautiful light blue color in the snow.
The trail out to Mill Creek Falls was filled with green meadows, forests of pine trees and blankets of yellow daisies.
Hiking up to Crags Lake was a bear, but worth the end result. People were swimming in the lake, but I forgot my swim suit and had to sit out and just watch. I did get to swim in
Manzanita and Butte Lakes!
Forest fires have devastated parts of Lassen. It was delightful to see wildflowers and new growth underneath the burned out trees.
Giant dandelions were blooming everywhere in the burned out areas. Make a wish!
Frail wildflowers blooming in the midst of burned trees; life in the midst of death; hope in the midst of darkness; faith in the midst of unfortunate circumstances. Believe.
Early one morning I was out poking around and found this little bird nesting in an old hole in the tree, most likely made by a woodpecker.
Lassen Peak in all of its snow covered glory!
After leaving the
Manzanita area, I drove over and camped at Butte Lake. That would be me enjoying the twilight and warm fire. It was wonderfully peaceful there; a moment in time I will always remember.
Cinder Cone is a cinder cone volcano that is just waiting to be climbed. The trail began right across from my campsite, so after I set up my camp, I walked over to the trail. It was downright ominous standing at the base.
Lucky for me Dr. Eugene arrived at the base the same time I did. We encouraged each other that we could make it to the top, so off we went, with Dr. Eugene in the lead.
The trail is difficult to say the least; made up of loose
scoria which is kind of like ground up gravel; easier to walk on then sand, but not much easier. It is an abrupt 700 ft elevation gain as you walk up to the top, but as you can see I made it!
It felt like I was standing at the top of the world as I looked down into the crater of the volcano. You can actually walk down into it, but that also means you have to walk back up; I was so done with that.
Some of the loose lava rocks at the top; so pretty!
Looking down into the crater; kind of spooky. The view at the top was outrageous. In the background you can just see Lassen Peak, to the sides are the Lava Beds and Painted Dunes. Incredible feeling.
Down in the Warner Valley, there is quite a bit of volcanic activity. Boiling Springs Lake has steam rising from the surface, as well as hot springs,
mudpots, and fumaroles along the western shore. I half way expected to see a dinosaur emerge from the shadows.
On the way out to Devil's Kitchen in Lassen Volcanic National Park, I found this handmade waterwheel turning round and round in the little stream.
The trail takes you through nearly a mile of lush green meadows. I was alone crossing the meadow and it sort of felt like the Sound of Music; but no singing.
Devil's Kitchen is filled with the stench of sulphur, smoking fumaroles, steam vents, bubbling mud pits and milky white hot streams of water. You can safely walk through the area on established trails and boardwalks and look down at the red and yellow cracked ground, feel the heat from the steam vents and hear the weird sounds of bubbling, plopping and belching filling the air; a perfect heaven for boys.
After leaving Mt. Rainier National Park, I had the bright idea to drive down the Oregon coast and camp along the way. My first stop was the quaint town of Florence. The one drawback was that everything was covered in fog. I patiently sat in this lovely coffee shop, drinking Latte's and working on my pictures while waiting for the fog to clear.
Old pilings line the riverbank; the remains of the original ferry landing. The fog is resting so beautifully upon the bridge, trees, coastline and unfortunately upon all my plans.
Small bird boxes rest in the pilings of the old ferry, inhabited by many inquisitive little birds!
After a while, I got in my car and started driving past miles and miles of sand dunes covered with ATV's and dirt bikes, hoping the fog would lift off the Oregon coast; but alas it was still hiding in the mist. I abruptly changed course and started driving to Lassen Volcanic National Park and on the way found this awesome spot to swim at Bear Creek. Very cool, very relaxing!
At last I made it to Lassen; a beautiful park filled with frozen lakes, smoking fumaroles, volcanic mountains, rivers, lakes and snow covered Lassen Peak. The peak in this picture is actually called Brokeoff Mountain!
My first campsite at Manzanita Lake was crowded but also near the lake. Early in the morning I went down to the Lake and watched Osprey, Ravens, a Bald Eagle, wild geese and songbirds flying and squawking and singing all at the same time.
Parts of Lassen Volcanic National Park were completely snow covered, with just bits of ground exposed by the snowmelt showing through.
Lake Helen in Lassen Volcanic National Park was just beginning to melt, exposing the beautiful light blue color in the snow.
The trail out to Mill Creek Falls was filled with green meadows, forests of pine trees and blankets of yellow daisies.
Hiking up to Crags Lake was a bear, but worth the end result. People were swimming in the lake, but I forgot my swim suit and had to sit out and just watch. I did get to swim in Manzanita and Butte Lakes!
Forest fires have devastated parts of Lassen. It was delightful to see wildflowers and new growth underneath the burned out trees.
Giant dandelions were blooming everywhere in the burned out areas. Make a wish!
Frail wildflowers blooming in the midst of burned trees; life in the midst of death; hope in the midst of darkness; faith in the midst of unfortunate circumstances. Believe.
Early one morning I was out poking around and found this little bird nesting in an old hole in the tree, most likely made by a woodpecker.
Lassen Peak in all of its snow covered glory!
After leaving the Manzanita area, I drove over and camped at Butte Lake. That would be me enjoying the twilight and warm fire. It was wonderfully peaceful there; a moment in time I will always remember.
Cinder Cone is a cinder cone volcano that is just waiting to be climbed. The trail began right across from my campsite, so after I set up my camp, I walked over to the trail. It was downright ominous standing at the base. 
Lucky for me Dr. Eugene arrived at the base the same time I did. We encouraged each other that we could make it to the top, so off we went, with Dr. Eugene in the lead.
It felt like I was standing at the top of the world as I looked down into the crater of the volcano. You can actually walk down into it, but that also means you have to walk back up; I was so done with that.
Some of the loose lava rocks at the top; so pretty!
Looking down into the crater; kind of spooky. The view at the top was outrageous. In the background you can just see Lassen Peak, to the sides are the Lava Beds and Painted Dunes. Incredible feeling.
Down in the Warner Valley, there is quite a bit of volcanic activity. Boiling Springs Lake has steam rising from the surface, as well as hot springs, mudpots, and fumaroles along the western shore. I half way expected to see a dinosaur emerge from the shadows. 
On the way out to Devil's Kitchen in Lassen Volcanic National Park, I found this handmade waterwheel turning round and round in the little stream.
The trail takes you through nearly a mile of lush green meadows. I was alone crossing the meadow and it sort of felt like the Sound of Music; but no singing. 
Devil's Kitchen is filled with the stench of sulphur, smoking fumaroles, steam vents, bubbling mud pits and milky white hot streams of water. You can safely walk through the area on established trails and boardwalks and look down at the red and yellow cracked ground, feel the heat from the steam vents and hear the weird sounds of bubbling, plopping and belching filling the air; a perfect heaven for boys.