Some
national parks have each day or weekend at the start or end of the regular
season when the roads that are covered in snow over the winter are cleared and prepared
for cars. But before the cars are allowed in, hikers and bikers get to use the
road without the presence of cars. Crater Lake features a weekend before the
rim road is closed for the season where bikers can ride the road with none cars
along the way, before the road is closed to everyone, in September. Lassen
Volcanic park has such each day at the start of the season, right after the
roads are cleared of snow within the spring. today is named the Hike and Bike
Event. within the year 2016, it happened on June 11, and that we made each day
trip of driving there from Sacramento to participate.
We
started at the Kohm Yah-Mah-Nee Visitor Center at the south end of the park. We
could see that the road into the park was gated after the doorway station and
there was a string of hikers on the road leading up to the geothermal area
further inside the park, the Sulphur Works. After a quick stop within the
visitor center to ask questions and to vary to our biking clothes, we unloaded
the bikes from the rear of our vehicle.
We
started biking up an extended slope to the Sulphur Works and after crossing a
bridge, stopped to seem at a bubbling mud pot. Then the road continues climbing
again to an overlook with a view back to the visitor center. It then curves
around Diamond Peak to point north and supply a view of Mount Lassen. We
stopped along the thanks to take pictures and make adjustments to the bikes. We
also got video footage of other bikes coming down the slope, besides our
point-of-view footage using our GoPro cameras.
Mount
Lassen dominates the view to the north and it is a very distinct peak. Since it
is a volcano, it's that cone-like shape you'd expect, but on its southern slope
are huge blocks of cooled lava that form a definite wall downslope of the ridgeline.
It gives Lassen's southern face a glance that basically stands out.
After
climbing up an excellent switchback, the foremost curvy a part of the road
south of the height , we continued on the road reaching Emerald Lake. it had
been still filled in with snow with some melt water round the shore. a touch
farther along, we reached Lake Helen, an outsized body of water south of the
Lassen peak. South of Lake Helen are some steep slopes.
We've
skied the Lassen Park Road before and this a part of the road always gives us
some reason for concern. The winding road that leads up to Lake Helen often has
snow accumulated on the slope such an error together with your skis could end
in a really long slump the slope below the road. Also, at Lake Helen, the slopes
to the south often have overhanging cornices that would break off and tumble
down the slope to the road that we're skiing along.
After
curling along the southern side of Lake Helen in an eastward direction, the
road again curls northward and climbs to the Lassen Peak parking lot , which is
on the brink of the very best point of the road. We biked up this slope that
had snow on either side of the road and a plow parked partway up. We were on
mountain bikes, but still felt a touch embarrassed when a man riding on a road
bike passed us by. We consoled ourselves in thinking that his bike was lighter
than ours were so it had been easier for him.
When
we reached the Lassen Peak parking lot , we pulled in and looked it over a
touch bit and skim the sign at the trailhead. The snowbank round the parking
lot was above the highest of the sign. We could see from the tracks within the
snow, that some were trying to climb to the height even with the snow so deep.
Just
a touch distance past the parking lot is that the highest point along the
Lassen Park Road. We reached it briefly order, then had an extended downhill in
an eastward direction faraway from the height . there have been switchbacks
farther down that slope also , but these aren't as tight because the switchback
arising the slope from the south entrance. Either way, reaching the part of the
road involves switchbacking.
We
hoped to travel farther along the road to the Devastated Area or maybe
Manzanita Lake, but we didn't reach the park as early as we wanted, so we
rotated at the Kings Creek Trailhead turnout and climbed back toward the part
of the road so as to urge back to the car before sunset.
We've
since acknowledged that Lassen gets more snow than almost the other location in
California. The road east of the road's part had many snow albeit we were doing
this ride in June. As we rode copy the switchbacks to the part , there was
enough snow that we couldn't see over the banks. By now , we weren't so curious
about taking too many photos and wanted to urge GoPro point-of-view video
footage, so we didn't stop as often. Plus, the sun was getting closer to the
western horizon so still photography wasn't such a priority.
After
the part , we didn't stop at the Lassen Peak trail parking lot and looked
forward to some fast downhill stretches getting back to the car. We discussed
any upcoming shots we wanted to urge with the GoPros before we started getting
up to hurry . We got footage looking back at the rider, trailing the rider from
behind, and following the rider from the side, right and left.
Before
continuing past Lake Helen, we stopped to urge pictures of the lake filled in
with snow and a blue ring of melt water around it. The white snow with a
light-weight blue ring looked very interesting, especially with Lassen Peak
looming over it.
We
hit the switchbacks after Emerald Lake, but had to use brakes to stop build up
an excessive amount of speed because there was water on the road from snow
melting off of the snow banks that caused us concern about slipping. once we
came to the Sulphur Works, we were in deepening shadows because the sun got
lower and there have been many hikers hurrying down the road back to their
cars.
We
received our car while it had been still bright enough to ascertain what we
were doing as we loaded the bikes back onto the car rack. Then we changed out
of our biking clothes at the visitor center's bathroom before making the repel
to Sacramento.
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