GRIT Outside

Options for camping during a pandemic in California were limited on the eve of 2020/2021transition. Before the pandemic, winter time generally reduced the number of open campgrounds due to snow and increased maintenance requirements. Add state mandated shutdowns and quarantine to the mix and one finds even backcountry camping restricted in places like Yosemite National Park. Hotels are off limits in most of the state. One of the only national parks open for camping was Lassen Volcanic National Park (LVNP), which is luckily only a 3.5 hour drive from the East Bay! 

In the winter time (Approximately Nov to May), LVNP only plows the road from the southwest entrance up to the Kohm Yah-mah-nee Visitor Center parking area. The rest of the park highway is designated for pristine skiing and snowshoeing. The park highway allows one to reach a number of backcountry skiing destinations and steaming hydrothermal locales. 

 

The campground: 

The Southwest Walk-In camping area is moved to dispersed tent camping in the forest located south of the Kohm Yah-mah-nee Visitor Center parking area or car/trailer camping in the center parking lot area.. A map describing the locales and further information on cost of camping can be found here. On this popular holiday weekend we only saw 3 other tent campers, but there was enough room for at least 6 times that amount. As for car campers, there were at most 9 vehicle campers on any one night. The parking lot did fill up completely during the day, hosting families with their kids and sleds, but quickly emptied by 4 pm. Heated restrooms are available 24 hours a day to all campers and visitors located at the park at the Kohm Yah-mah-nee Visitor Center. It was definitely a trek from our tent to the restrooms, but they were so worth it. 

Prep and gear:

I had been watching the forecast for days leading up to the trip and several storms were projected to pass through the area right before and during our stay. As my departure day got closer, it appeared LVNP would get a fresh dusting on the evening of the 30th. You can check the LVNP website for an up to date idea of the amount of snow still left on the ground. With fresh snow in mind, I loaded up my Tacoma on the morning of the 31st and headed north to LVNP for three nights and four days of winter camping. 

Gear for the weekend:

• NorthFace Bastion 3p tent
• Marmot Lithium 0 degree bag
• Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol Sleeping pad + 
• Down Parka
• Columbia insulated snow boots
• Cross country ski equipment
• MSR Snowshoes
• Cook set
• Waterproof clothing and lots of layers from head to toe
• Snacks, snacks and some more snacks

Note: I rented the Northface Bastion tent as a test run. I had never used such an advanced mountaineering tent before and wanted to test out its functions. The temperature also never dropped below 25 degrees. Therefore I was more than cozy in my bag. 

The trip and activities: 

The drive from the East Bay was quick and easy. Once at elevation, there was still ice and snow on the road, but it was mostly plowed by the daily early morning crew. My two wheel drive Tacoma made it to the top confidently in said conditions. I paid a ranger my National Park entrance fee and self registered for two nights for tent camping at the entrance kiosk. I parked in the center median of the Parking Area as directed. This allows for the morning plow to clear the surrounding parking lot for day use visitors. After parking, I walked to the area indicated for tent camping and found a level patch of snow that didn’t require too much digging or manipulation. I didn’t have to post anything on my tent, but detached the self register tag when paying for my site and left it in view on the dashboard of my vehicle. 

We did most of our cooking on the tailgate of my truck since we both brought dinner and breakfast items fit for a NYE celebration and didn’t want to trek it all back and forth from the tent. The truck was also so much closer to the restroom. Plus, we enjoyed the pleasure of free entertainment of the fellow car-campers and day-users nearby.  

The night of the 31st was completely calm, quiet and cold. The moon was a couple days past full, therefore lit up the surrounding snow, making it unnecessary to use a headlamp. The dark hour or so between sundown and moonrise allowed us viewing pleasure of the stars on that clear night.

New Year’s day was clear and calm. No snow fell overnight, leaving the trails a bit crusty from the freezing night. These conditions allowed us to cross country ski up the road to Lake Helen with spectacular clear views of the surrounding peaks and valleys covered with snow. As we got closer to our destination, we could see Mountain Lassen in the near distance. The high winds at the top of Mt Lassen were blowing the snow off the mountain creating a crown of haze at the peak that shifted every time we looked up. 

On January 1st and 2nd, we received about 2-3 inches of snow each night. The camping spot and the Parking Area appeared to be fairly protected from high wind. The forecast called for 20-24 mph gusts in the evening, but it never seemed to pick up during the night.  The fresh powder each night filled the potholes and snow shoe tracks each morning which made for excellent cross country skiing. We were even able to click into our skis right from the cars since the parking lot was still snow-covered and the day-users didn’t arrive until about 10 am or so.

With all the fresh powder we saw loads of tracks left by local critters crisscrossing the road. We think we saw a pair of fox tracks and patches where it appeared they would stop and play in the snow. The rabbit tracks barely broke the surface of the snow. We kept our eyes peeled for sightings of the owners of said tracks, but they are well camouflaged for the terrain.  By the time we got back down the mountain from skiing we found the first 500 feet of the road, next to the visitors center, was crawling with families and young kids sledding on both sides of the road. We had to be super careful not to run into unobservant folks as we were descending. 

Note on avalanche danger: 

I’ll finish with a mention of avalanche danger. The slopes next to the road in the backcountry area steep and prone to avalanches during the winter. The visitors center and park map has made it clear where to look and to avoid certain areas during times when avalanche danger is high. Unfortunately, the LVNP does not provide a daily report on the level of avalanche danger on each slope like they do in the Mount Shasta area and Pacific Northwest. The park provides a description of the area where avalanches might occur and leaves visitors to  determine if the slopes are unsafe or not. You can find a detailed description on avalanche safety here. 

Even with the pandemic and a severe lack of campground options in California, we found LVNP to be relatively quiet, easily accessible and convenient on even a major holiday weekend. I would definitely camp here again. 

**** Credit to Casey for contributing photos.