Camping and hiking in Lassen NP

August 9, 2008 11:37 AM

Camping recommendations in/near Lassen National Park? Also, hiking/fishing spots?

1) We'll be car camping during the upcoming week. We don't mind larger campgrounds, but we're looking for places with tent sites that aren't right on top of each other. Bear boxes are a huge plus.

2) Know any good hikes? (I can only go two to three hours before I start to whine, but the gf likes longer hikes and trail runs, so any advice is appreciated.)

3). Trout streams. Yes?

posted by mudpuppie to Travel & Transportation (5 answers total)

Make sure you check out the lava tubes. They're not that long of a hike, but they're really cool.
posted by Ms. Saint at 11:52 AM on August 9, 2008

We camped at Manzanita Lake last Labor Day weekend and it was quite nice. They do have bear boxes.
posted by otherwordlyglow at 4:26 PM on August 9, 2008

Fishing: Manzanita Lake is full of big beautiful trout, and they are notoriously difficult to hook unless you know what you're doing. Fly fishing is generally the best way to go in the Lassen area, though you could use a spinning rod with a fly on a bobber thing. Barbless is the rule, as is catch & release.
Hat Creek is the best nearby stream, it's just north of the Park boundary. Check DFG regulations, as different sections have different regs. Feel free to email me for more details.

The hike from trailhead to the top of Lassen is a strenuous couple hours, but not too bad for many folks (and their whole families). The view is totally worth the effort.
posted by artdrectr at 1:11 AM on August 10, 2008

Thanks for the info, folks. We were leaning towards the Manzanita Lake campground anyway, so I think that's now the plan.
posted by mudpuppie at 12:19 PM on August 10, 2008

I've got a few write-ups of Lassen hikes over at Trailspotting.
posted by yorkie at 10:06 AM on October 2, 2008