2017 Summer camping Trip.

McArthur Burney Falls 

Mt Shasta - Burney Falls - Lassen Volcanic - Clear Lake

Lakshmi and myself decided to take Arshiya on a week long summer camping trip to lakes, waterfalls  and snow mountains, she likes all of them immensely because of reading a sleeping story of frozen frequently. her favorite story.

Burney Falls Trail

Volcanic Legacy Scenic
ByWay vista point

 I kind of decided to cover all three of them in the camping trip and i don't want to drive too far from where we live(San Francisco bay area). After long discussion within family, i kind of narrowed down to Mt. Shasta and Lassen Volcanic NP. I am not where where else i can show snow to Arshiya in summer month August in CA. After fixing locations rest became standard process, finding proper camp grounds to our preferences, like showers must and between the vacation days not interested to drive too long(not more than 2 hours).

As a part of preparing for week long camping trip, i decided to update/upgrade some of my camping gear due our old toyota sedan space limitation(Camry 1995). I upgraded sleeping pads to  one klymit static v2 sleeping pad single and one double size. They ultra-lite and very compact filled the requirement. and i replaced sleeping bag to Rumple  double blanket for 2 people(Arshiya and Lakshmi) and one Feathered friends Hummingbird sleeping bag for Arhisya but she preferred cotton base bear stuffed sleeping bag from Costco. Lakshmi preferred old synthetic thick sleeping bag.  Eventually i used blank most of the days in conjunction with sleeping pads.

Next big preparation is for food, We spent lot energies on what to cook and dehydrate for camping(I kind of used to dehydrate indian vegi food for camping and fruits for snacks). By doing some of day camping before vacation helped us a lot to figure it out what food we can dehydrate. Finally, some green leaf dals, Spinach, Gongura and tomato curries are prepared for camping dinners/lunches. 

Our camping vacation is booked from Aug 13- Aug 20 in 3 different locations( 2 nights at Burney Falls , 3 days at Manzanita Lake in Lassen Volcanic NP and 2 days at Clear Lake). When i made reservation to campgrounds, i thought of leaving in early morning of Aug 13th.  Then i changed my mind because of 5 hours drive with kid in mind instead decided to drive a day before midget of the distance leisurely and wanted to stop where ever we will be by sunset. rough plan was to stop nearer to Mt. Shasta by evening spend some time viewing Mt Shasta views and Beautiful sunset from lake and mountain.

we left home around 2PM in fremont. We drove very relax and hit some traffic at 580. We took little detour at Berkely Downtown to have quick bite and have some medicine But finally we were there for an hour walking in downtown. Finally an hour later we started from Berkely, hit HWY 13 and 24 before 680 and Drove on 680 to I-80 East towards Sacramento.  Then Took exit on 505 HWY to I-5 North.  After merging on to I-5 north took a break at around 6 and had some drinks and milkshake. thought it was quick one but took longer than expected. It was really hot i believe it is around 100F. We could not stand in sun, either we spent time inside restaurant or inside car with A/C on. 

Then we drove non-stop still Dunsmuir, CA, on the way we crossed Red Bluff, Redding and Shasta Lake too. 

We were discussing where to say "good for the day. thinking on each city like Red Bluff, then Sun light was there so decided we go to Redding. It was just 20 miles away. Still Sun did not set when we reach Redding, So we started to drive little north from Redding entered Shasta Lake viewing setting the sun over the lake and views of the Castle Crags (one of the CA State Park  walkable from I-5) drive-through on I-5 North. By the time we reached Shasta Lake, Then i decided to stop at Dunsmuir, CA for the night. When i was reading the maps to go to Burney Falls, i read a lot about Dunsmuir city and their 100 years plus history. I got some level understanding on type of accommodations i can get there.  It is half mile away from I-5 merge and just 6 miles to HWY 89 to Burney Falls.  We stayed at DunsMuir Hotel on Main street, it was build 100 years ago it does not have TV or A/C but I was totaled flattered with their hospitality. 

DunsMuir, CA :

Located in the Shasta Cascade area of Northern California, Dunsmuir is a popular destination for tourists. Visitors come to fish trout in the Sacramento and McCloud Rivers, or to see and climb Mount Shasta, Castle Crags or the Trinity Alps. Visitors ski (both alpine and cross-country) and bicycle, or can hike to the waterfalls, streams and lakes in the area, including nearby Mossbrae Falls, Hedge Creek Falls, Lake Siskiyou, Castle Lake and Shasta Lake.

Morning we got up at own time, no time constraints on this trip, it is planned to relax and spend some quality family time and play with Arhisya. We refreshed at very slow and had breakfast at cafe just right across the road. At around 10AM we are road to drive to McArthur Burney Falls.

Burney-Falls State Park

Drive on Volcanic Legacy Scenic ByWay to Burney Falls from Dunsmuir, CA is very  beautiful.  Seeing Mt. Shasta from different views on the road stopped for few vista points to capture majestic Mt. Shasta. One the way stopped at McCloud for camping shopping for propane cylinder, some veggies and campfire accessories. It was around 12 by the time we reached Burney Falls, luckily our camp site is empty we were allowed to go directly to campsite.  It was the best California State Park campground so far.

We straight went to campground and pitched a tent, prepared a nice desi lunch and took some rest. in the evening, we thought there was program at campfire for kids, went there some kids program. But, unfortunately we could not find any program, not sure why? Then we thought we can go for loop hike around falls. it drops to 100 ft  within 0.3 miles and climbs back to the same elevation increases more gradually with the distance of 0.8 miles.
 This is the first hiking trip for Arshiya and going easy. we stopped when ever Arshiya wanted to stop and played in water some time when we stopped at bottom of the falls and along the creek. Then we went to campground. picked wood for campfire for night and other accessories for night campfire. It Was almost 10 by the time we cooked and had dinner in warm campfire. And finally, had bath and went for sleep.

Next morning, when i come out of the tent. we found one hiker just sleeping on ground with alcohol bottle side to him. Lakshmi got scared by seeing the setup. By seeing him and his luggage, i instantly knew he thru-hiker doing PCT(Pacific Crest Trail, starting from Mexican border to Canada border)  NoBo ( NorthBound - headed to North). I knew PCT details from one of my Sandiego colleague, Tim Umstead, his family is one of the famous family in Thru-Hike especially in PCT community. I knew PCT trail goes through middle of Burney Falls State park. For most the thru-hikers, Burney Falls park general store is one of the pick up location for their re-supply packages. When he woke up, i went to him and got introduced myself. started talking about his PCT experience.

He is around late 20s from southern CA doing North Bound on PCT.
Last night was town day for him and his group. they went to town for getting resupply things, by the time they are in park it was late night i believe he might be so tired and slept where ever he can find a place, it happened to be near to our camp and tent. His group is around 6 people, planning to complete whole PCT in 100 days. to complete whole PCT 2650 miles covering in 100 days by foot is very daunting task. Most of the people i knew or following are doing in some where 5 to 6 months, means some where between 150 days to 180 days.  On average 26.5 miles they need to complete day after day for next 100 days. while talking to us, his group member is crossing by the the tent, he packed his stuff and left with him  to continue hiking. 

After he left, we had very late breakfast. spent some time leisurely at camp site. by 1PM went to burned city for lunch and to buy something to play at camp sites for next 6 days. Burney city is very near it did not take even 30 mins to get there.

We stopped at first shopping center we can find some sports, pharmacy and restaurant. First had lunch, then picked some medicines for Arshiya and Lakshmi. Then went to sports shop and picked shuttle bats.

It was almost 4 by the time we started. I drove directly to lake Britton, it has swim beach. Arshiya loves water any day, So myself and Arshiya   played in the lake, water was little cold but manageable. We were there for more than an hour to 2. Then we went to waterfalls one more time with the idea of doing loop hike one more time. After going to bottom of Water falls, we saw the day light and Arshiya energy levels decided just go campsite before enough light is left. When we hiked up to parking lot, we saw two deers, mother and cute little cub. it is very close encounter for Arshiya, We were there till Arshiya wanted to leave.  We came early to campground, prepared nice desi dinner had some chit chat went to sleep when we tired. inside the bed, Arshiya is telling stories and jokes non-stop. we were just listening. She is into sleeping alone in her Costco Bunny cotton sleeping bag and she enjoys now unlike our night camping earlier in the summer. we are not sure when we slept. we woke up late. i need to leave campsite by 12, we have enough time to pack and leave. I knew it is just 50 mins drive to next camp ground at Manzanita Lake in Lassen Volcanic NP.

we had breakfast and started packing at our own time frame, it is very funny we are just 3 people with one small tent and sleeping bags. it took almost more than 2 hours to pack. with in 2 hours almost all campers near to us packed everything and left 30 mins before to us. Now i am sort of fine on unpacking and setting campsite with tent. I need to learn how to pack things first or i need to learn little bit about organizing things, i need to work a little bit on it.

Manzanita Lake, Lassen Volcanic National Park

Just before 12 we left Burney Falls checked out, then we are onto Lassen Volcanic NP. I stopped at OldStation in the middle for gasoline and to have some lunch. it was really a surprise shock for us to have very tasty burger and sandwiches in the middle of no-where. It was really very hot temperature wiss and it was middle of 90's. after lunch, we explored  Subway Cave and the underground world of a lava tube/cave near oldstation, ca  at junction of state route 44 and 89. It is 1/3 mile long and cave completely dark, floor is very rough and chill too. better carry flash light, sturdy shoes and jacket while planning to go.

After coming out of cave, we left for next camp site in Manzanita Lake. it is just 15 mins drive from OldStation. i drove very slow than required speed limit and gave access to other vehicles as i was driving first time on these routes i am also viewing landscapes. I enjoy driving remote lands for some reason i liked them a lot. By the time we reach camp site it was almost 5, our camp site was in C-Loop and unfortunately it is one of the few open site, where most of the day time sun hits whole campsite. i waited till sunset i found better shade place to pitch a tent. I put a tent little far from picnic table and campfire pit in the middle of trees. rest of the day we took rest and explored what we can get from general store and spent reading whole map to have some plans for next two days. I want to take Arshiya on one small hike at least for an hour or little more than an hour hike that means around 2 miles nearly with no elevation trails or very negligible elevation for each day. Finally locked first day just drove the park till other entrance(Kohm Yah-mah -nee entrance) and the following day do one little reasonable hike( mostly King Creek trail) and do some lite activities for the rest  of the each day. I am also expecting some level of snow play at park higher elevations.  

That night was simple, prepared dinner(interesting we prepared rotis and desi ridge gourd and un-mashed mixed lentils and it was really good) and took rest for next days activties  in mind. while preparing and having the dinner, i got some new ideas on how to dehydrate few desi vegetarian recipes and got some first hand experience on what dehydrated foods working and what not working or how to fix it to make little better while making actual meals out of dehydrated food. By the middle of this trip i was very comfortable with desi lunch/dinner preparations while camping as i already have experimented by taking family on few one night camping trips near bay area  before the one week long vacation. 

Next morning simple, no cooking just went to general store,  picked cheese sandwich for Lakshmi and Arshiya and we were on the road by 11AM. we spent some at summit lake, devastated area, paradise meadows viewing drive through and our first stop was at lassen peak trailhead parking lot. We stopped car at parking lot got down there explored the place. unfortunately we did not do lassen peak hike. Lakshmi was really interested to do the hike. may be in next few years we plan again for hiking when Arshiya get used to doing hikes.

Earlier this year in june first week when we were there for a night it snowed whole night in the same Manzanita lake camp group But she did not know there will more than enough snow on the side of the roads to play in summer too, based on snow level on that year. Luckily, last year it snowed a lot on sierra mountains and it still left without 100% meltdown. may be it will fully melt in next 2-3 weeks.  It was really sweet surprise for Arshiya, we can see her excitement. i let her play in snow for more than an hour. Then, i pushed hard Lakshmi and Arshiya to leave the place to drive further. One the way lakshmi was noting down where to spend time while coming back and the following day. next i stopped at Sulphur-works. Unfortunately, Arshiya is not comfortable with sulphur smell, so we needed to take her away from sulphur smell. lakshmi and myself walked on that small sulphur works pathway separately. 

Then finally we went to Kohm Yak-Mah-nee visitor center and were there for around 2 hours. explored surroundings then went inside the building. Movie about lassen volcanic np was about to start, we watched whole movie about lassen national park how it is started and sort of gives an idea of what might have happened in the park over a period of time. and and it also shows definitive incidents that are captured in recent history. After watching i came to know Lassen NP is one of the rare volcanic place/park where all four types of volcanic activities happened.
we had late lunch at visitor center food stall. on the way back to campsite, we stopped at many places like emerald lake, Lake Helen, Bumpass Hell, Summit lake, King Creek Trail Head. We gave a attempt to him king creek waterfall hike and mist waterfall hike but we immediately gave after Arshiya consideration, she was so tired at Emerald lake. i think playing in snow and walking on snow for more than 30 mins killed all her energy it seems. We decided to hike king creek falls next morning then we straight went to Campground. with a stop at general store to enquire for kayaking with kid options. we were told it is doable many families bought their own kayaking to floating boards. (i inspired to learn swimming at least learn to float so i can also able to do such things, i make a note from this trip).  we took one hour kayaking, except me Lakshmi or Gingiri are newbies,  while doing kayaking Arshiya started shaking the kayaking, that made Lakshmi and myself very nervous and especially Lakshmi got very tense and asked to go to shore. thats the end of kayaking after 30 mins.  i had a hell of a time to steer kayaking and also it was windy not too much but my shoulder and hand muscles are burnt out after 30 mins kayaking. Other than that we did very lite activities first thing we took bathes at general store and was there in camp site way before sunset and started dinner preparation. we had finished dinner, while preparing dinner Lakshmi and Arshiya played games, badminton and Chutes and Ladders, i was not sure who is cheating who But they  continuously played.

What Is a Volcano

A volcano is a vent that directly connects magma to the surface of the Earth.

Cinder Cone, AKA Scoria Cone:

Cinder cones are usually created from a single opening. The opening of a cinder cone is a cone-shaped structure, while the steeps are formed of the erupted, fragmented cinders that fall close to the chimney/vent.

The manner of eruption for cinder cones is relatively simple. When the lava erupts, cinders of it are blown into the air. These fragmented cinders fall a short distance from the opening, thus creating the cone.

Shield Volcano:

Another type of volcano is the shield volcano. Unlike cinder cones, shield volcanoes can be very, very big in size. However, they are not as dangerous as that size might make it seem. This is because the eruption of lava out of shield volcanoes is not accompanied by pyroclastic material (bursts of gas and particles).

Shield volcanoes may be tall but tend to be very broad, with less steep slopes than other volcanoes.

Shield volcanoes can be huge because of their ample supply of magma. For example, Mauna Loa is a shield volcano that rises more than 30,000 feet above its base on the bottom of the ocean.

Composite Volcano:

The general structure of composite volcanoes is tall and symmetrical and with steep sides. Commonly, composite volcanoes erupt hot gases, ash, lava, and pumice as well as stiff, slow-moving lava. Moreover, deadly mudflows—also commonly known as ‘lahars’—can also accompany the eruption.

Composite volcanoes are believed to kill the most people because of their deadly nature and high numbers. Mount Shasta and Mt. Rainier  Care two famous composite volcanoes.

Lava Dome Volcano:

They are formed when the lava is too viscous to flow to a great distance. As the lava dome slowly grows, the outer surface cools and hardens as the lava continues to pile within. Eventually, the internal pressure can shatter the outer surface, causing loose fragments to spill down its sides. Generally, such lava domes are found on the flanks of larger composite volcanoes.

Next Morning plan is simple just do hike at king creek trail and pick a picnic table have lunch based on time came back to general store and do laundry take rest for next day drive to clear lake. 

We all got up bit late, no breakfast preparation on the morning instead i planned to pick some cheese sandwich at general store at Manzanita Lake on the way. We were there at King Creek TrailHead by 11:30 i guess. we know it is going to be bit heavy for Arshiya as she never did hiking on rocks. 

There are two ways to reach waterfall, one is via horse trail and another along cascades, horse trail is slower and steadier decent mac easier on knees. trail leads to a large waterfall draped in ferns and plants that thrive off the mist generated from falls. this year creek/cascades side trail is close due instability on rocks.
We started the trail with
Arshiya pace and took enough breaks whenever Arshiya wants to sit. Hike is around 700 ft elevation difference from trailhead with 3 mile round trip. we finished in 3 hours, Arshiya did very good job, she hiked whole trail on her own. she liked the trail but only problem she is not get used to walking on un even rocks. we walked for 10 mins and then took a break. Interestingly we more breaks while defending than climbing.  On the way back at king creek meadow we spent lot of time it is very beautiful with low of varieties wild flowers.  Seems all the snow melted and all fawn lilies and Satin Lupines are in full bloom.

After completing trail, we drove to king creek parking lot to get a picnic table for lunch. it is reasonable big parking lot and we found very big crowded after Lassen peak trailhead parking lot. Cold boiling lake is just 05 miles from parking lot. But we passed on it this time. we picked a picnic table with lot of privacy from parking lot little inside with lot of trees covered but creek and meadow is open view from it. we cooked curry at picnic table within 5 to 10 mins, our lunch was ready in 10 mins. we had very relax lunch viewing open greenish meadow. Arshiya played for some time there. From there we wanted to go to our campground to finish laundry work.

As Lakshmi and Arshiya at laundry room doing laundry and taking showers, i went for a manzanita lake loop trail of 1.5 miles. i picked up the trail just behind the general store and where kayak stall is there. I completed the trail on my normal pace, viewing lassen and chaos crags peaks from various corners of the lake with their reflection on lake.
And, i also did a trail around reflection lake loop. I felt it was bit isolated i found none on reflection lake loop and also trail is not maintained properly compared to manzanita loop. After taking showers we went to campsite, the rest of day was very leisure, i cooked dinner very slow as Lakshmi and Arshiya were helping me with chapatis. we prepared chapatis for next morning breakfast too. Next morning it is going to be at least 3 hours drive time, with  considering road work delays and our breaks we wanted to leave as soon as we can. 

ClearLake, CA

Next morning no work got up packed everything refreshed it stopped at general store for coffee for me and sandwich for Lakshmi and Arshiya. we drove again whole park wanted to leave from south entrance, may be we might have left on north entrance due HWY 44 is more flat and less curvy, we know that from our earlier trips. We drove till few miles away from Mineral where heavy road work was going on and there delay times can be expetecd up to one hour. We struck there for more than 40 mins and then traffic released for our side, Finally it was bit late 1PM when we reached Red Bluff, CA. wanted to stop for lunch at AppleBee on the way to I-5 very convenient place. I have been telling to Arshiya we will have lunch at AppleBee, its one of her favorite food place, while going to ClearLake. 

Just few minutes before we leave she fell down catching squirrel at camp site she got slight skin rashes on one leg, she was so unhappy about it. I could not avoid skipping AppleBee though we are very lagging behind the schedule.  There are few traffic jams in the middle due some accidents, finally we reached Clear lake state park around 6:30. we went to campsite after check-in at park entrance. it seems park entrance is opened till midnight in summer months it is very unusual or i might not know for California state parks. There are tons of lizards in the park, if we walk for few steps we can see at least one lizards. we don't have any water related toys/vehicles or we don't do fishing too.  That night was very slow we did nothing took relax and setup the tent very late and finished dinner just after sunset. when it is dark we went to showers.  For some reason Lakshmi feels it is lonely place with lot of darkness.  may be the campground  and our sites are located far end of park. 

Next day we went to visitor center spent some time there, we were at swim beach parking lot after lunch Arshiya and myself were in water for long time.  Towards evening Lakshmi wants to be in home for eclipse. after Arshiya enjoyed in lake we packed everything and left for home. It was very curvy road from clear lake to till Napa-Valley. We found one of the Vippassana, our favorite meditation,  center on the way. i have been doing/practicing Vippassana on and off for 20 years. we stopped just before i80 junction when it is sunset for little break and to get something for Arshiya. from the shopping complex parking lot we watched  beautiful sunset for few minutes. After picking donuts and coffee from Dunkin's-Donuts in American Canyon, CA we left for home. Finally we are home after having dinner in one of the Indian veggie   restaurant in Fremont.