Lassen Again

24th and 25th July 2009

The nostalgic trip down the memory lane was the waterfalls Paradise-Columbia River Gorge which made me go for some more waterfalls ! Visited Lassen Volcanic National Park for third time ! Just to shoot the Kings Creek Falls. The plan was to cover Mill Creek Falls too, but some how every time that doesn't happen :( Recently I have gone all alone for most of the trips. I thought of finding people to go with me this time. So, I called for a meetup and was joined by three other photographers, but not hikers !

We started from Bay Area at 2:00PM expecting to arrive at National Park by sunset. But, Friday traffic added three more hours to the five hour drive and so we were ready to hit the sleeping bags ! The sky was clear and the stars were numerous ... the sky looked like a black veil studded with diamonds. The darkness smelled cold. Next day, plan was to start by 5:00AM for sunrise and some reflections and the group was ready by 4:50AM !?! And we witnessed a gorgeous sunrise. It was worth all the planning, parting with that early morning delicious deep sleep ... and for all that effort we appreciated the miracle of that sunrise.

The dawn was dark with a tinge of red in it ... with seconds it changed to dark orange and then shades of red and bright orange ... with the light that sun brought with him the landscape opened up ... the mountain with a little snow patch on it ... the road we drove on to reach this spot ... the green of the trees ... the rocks and then ... it was morning ... I took few pictures ... but for me witnessing that scene was enough ... I could hear other photographers clicking and talking about HDR ... exposures ... polarizer and so on ... but for me , the spectacle of the sunrise that mattered !

We headed to Lake Helen as planned ... for the reflection of Lassen Peak on the silvery morning waters of the lake. But, the ripples in the water were already active ... So what ? it still makes beautiful picture ! Early morning lakeside was a great feeling. I have done this so many times but still every time it feels so refreshing. Early morning in the absence of the crowd this place looks so surreal and so out of the world.

After having a brief breakfast we headed to the kings creek falls. The trail was as steep as a rocky ladder ... the small clouds of dust raised as the group walked kicking the ground. Kings Creek, even in late July was flowing full, fast, twisting and wild. The cascades had full power and roar. Going down the steep rocky steps was a bit of challenge as we had to carry few expensive and heavy stuff on our back and also with our hands. The thing about American creeks is that they carry melted snow over the granite rocky beds and so the water is always white and the pools are blue. In India, or any nation with high rainfall, the streams and rivers carry a lot of mud with the heavy flow and hence the water is brown. They have their own earthy beauty.

At times the companions are a challenge. While two youngsters chattered nonstop, another did quietly his own thing. People join even when they donot have interest in half the things planned. Like, people want photoshoot but not the hiking involved. So, the cribbing and commenting was going on. And some patiently suffer. Well, in a group it happens, stick to your plans !! I went on hiking up the rocky trail while my back painfully ached under the weight of my backpack. Sun was quite strong on us.


In my opinion, people are excited to see something different than what we usually see. Just something like Bumpass Hell in Lassen. At least for me it is so. The ladscape opens up something amazing like acidic, hot blue pools, boiling mud pots, boiling lakes is something interesting to see. But surprizingly, my group thought otherwise ! Anyway, everybody has their own preferences and differences :) Sun was hovering right above our heads and the sulphur in the air wasn't pleasing either. Landscape was amazing again !

After the hard, hot day there was no possibility for soft bed or long shower. While others took rest in their tents I went for a short walk but, with each passing hour the number of mosquitoes was increasing. They were not much but, enough to take away your peace. I wasted no time in closing my eyes and falling into deep sleep. With that the idea of shooting star trails was forgotten.

Both ways we had food at Subway ... unlike my last few other trips where I had dinner with highest percent of grease at either Chinese or Thai restaurants, or Indian if we happened to find one ! Oh I was so hungry and I ordered a footlong ... I could not take a bite of that 7th inch of bread !? But, at that moment I wanted to eat spicy channa batura (deep fried Indian bread with spicy chickpea curry), or Malabar parotha and kurma (layered Indian bread with spicy vegetable curry) or strawberry shortcake, coffee icecream etc ...