Lassen Volcanic Park, north of Susanville in Northern California, is another one of my favorite California parks. It’s fairly close to Reno (where I live), and it makes a great day trip during the summer and fall.

In winter, the main road through the park is closed, but both entrance stations are open, and there are trails for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

The nicest thing about Lassen is that it’s not as crowded as a lot of other parks, even in the summer. For one thing, it’s out of the way, and for another, a lot of people just don’t seem to think there’s much to do there, but really, it’s a great park.

There are tons of hiking trails to choose from, and because Lassen has a volcanic history, there are a lot of geothermal features to the park, almost like a mini-Yellowstone right in Northern California.

My favorite hike is the hike to Bumpass Hell, a small valley filled with mudpots and other great features that are fun for the kids and parents, too. It’s a fairly level hike, until the last few hundred feet down into Bumpass and back, but it’s worth the effort to see and enjoy this area.

Of course, the hike is closed for the winter, but make a note of it when the roads open up again in April or May. Lassen is a little gem of a park, and once you discover it, I’ll bet you go back again and again.