Butte Lake and Cinder Cone are located just off Highway 44 on the north side of Lassen National Park about 11 miles from Old Station which is near the North east entrance to the park. From our cabin you head toward Susanville on Highway 36 and turn north on A21 which brings you through the Caribou Wilderness. At highway 44 you turn left. You'll pass a turn off to Crater Lake and you'll pass by Poisen Lake. 11 miles before reaching Old Station and the Hat Creek Area, you'll turn left onto a gravel road. After 7 miles of very bumpy driving you'll reach the Campgrounds. The lake is damned off by a massive lava bed, called the fantastic lava beds. This lava bed rises 50 to 100 feet above the forest floor and covers the area from the Cinder Cone to Snag Lake. The trail head to the Cinder Cone is located near the lake access. The hike to the Cinder Cone is strenuous, not because of the distance, but because of the elevation and the difficulty of walking on cinder. It is only 1.2 miles to the base of the Cone. Nevertheless, we did see some small children on the trail, but take your time and plenty of water as there is no water on the trail. The trail snakes along the edge of the Fantastic Lava Beds and the consitency of the cinder trail is similiar to a beach. The trail gains several hundred feet in elevation and there are sparse patches of shade where the little ones can rest. At close to 1 mile down the trail you can start to gain glimpses of the Cinder Cone which created this landscape and at 1.2 miles you get a full view. The trail up the cone is about .7 miles and you gain about 700 feet in elevation. On the day of this hike it was about 105 degrees so a view from the top of the cone will have to wait until next year. |
Butte Lake and Cinder Cone |
Butte Lake and Cinder Cone are located just off Highway 44 on the north side of Lassen National Park about 11 miles from Old Station which is near the North east entrance to the park. From our cabin you head toward Susanville on Highway 36 and turn north on A21 which brings you through the Caribou Wilderness. At highway 44 you turn left. You'll pass a turn off to Crater Lake and you'll pass by Poisen Lake. 11 miles before reaching Old Station and the Hat Creek Area, you'll turn left onto a gravel road. After 7 miles of very bumpy driving you'll reach the Campgrounds. The lake is damned off by a massive lava bed, called the fantastic lava beds. This lava bed rises 50 to 100 feet above the forest floor and covers the area from the Cinder Cone to Snag Lake. The trail head to the Cinder Cone is located near the lake access. The hike to the Cinder Cone is strenuous, not because of the distance, but because of the elevation and the difficulty of walking on cinder. It is only 1.2 miles to the base of the Cone. Nevertheless, we did see some small children on the trail, but take your time and plenty of water as there is no water on the trail. The trail snakes along the edge of the Fantastic Lava Beds and the consitency of the cinder trail is similiar to a beach. The trail gains several hundred feet in elevation and there are sparse patches of shade where the little ones can rest. At close to 1 mile down the trail you can start to gain glimpses of the Cinder Cone which created this landscape and at 1.2 miles you get a full view. The trail up the cone is about .7 miles and you gain about 700 feet in elevation. On the day of this hike it was about 105 degrees so a view from the top of the cone will have to wait until next year. |
