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| hiking 1, 2 | |
Juniper Lake / Mt. Harkness Our first hike started at the north end of Juniper Lake, which is located in the southeast corner of Lassen Park. We did an 8-mile counter-clockwise loop starting around the west side of the lake, taking the trail up to the fire lookout at the top of Mt. Harkness, then completing the loop around the east side of the lake. Total elevation gain was approximately 1500' and was moderately strenuous. We would give this hike a 10/10 rating for scenic value with beautiful shoreline views of Juniper Lake, one of the prettiest lakes in the park, and dramatic vistas of the surrounding peaks coming into view as you ascend Mt. Harkness. |
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| 8± mile hike shown in yellow. Mt. Harkness, elev. 8,048', at lower right. | |
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| Looking south across Juniper Lake toward Mt. Harkness, our destination | Rustic red chalet on the west shore |
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| Taking the fork up to Mt. Harkness. The open field of green consists of low-growing lupine plants. With a little more rain, this field would be in full bloom. That would be a sight to behold. | |
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| Mt. Lassen comes into view as we ascend the trail | Dick, Geno, Herb at the Lookout |
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| From Mt. Harkness looking north to Mt. Shasta in the horizon. . . | . . . with Juniper Lake below and Mt. Prospect behind |
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| View south to Lake Almanor | Jay and Herb with Rob Horn, the fire spotter |
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Inside the lookout -- L-R, Ralph, Dick (talking to Brooke on phone), Jay, Rob Horn, Herb and Geno › See Sac Bee story about Rob Horn and life at Mt. Harkness Lookout |
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Brokeoff Mountain Many consider the 7+ mile (round trip) hike up Brokeoff Mountain to be the most spectacular hike in the Park. The trail passes through several biological zones, offers tremendous vistas of the surrounding terrain and -- the big payoff at the end -- gives you an eyeball-to-eyeball view of Mt. Lassen where you can almost reach out and touch it. Brokeoff Mountain, at 9235', is the tallest remnant of the ancient Mt. Tehama Volcano that erupted some 400,000 to 600,000 years ago. Before the eruption, Mt. Tehama stood 11,000' high and was more than 8 miles wide at the base. |
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| From the trailhead, it is a strenuous 3.5-mile hike to the summit, climbing 2600'. | |
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| View of Brokeoff from the trailhead | East slope of Brokeoff Mt. forms the western edge of the Mt. Tehama caldera |
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| The trail passes by several waterlogged meadows | The trail takes you along the eastern base of Brokeoff |
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| Forgive my English, but I climbed over the ledge of a rockpile and saw this . . . it was a major HOLY SHIT!! moment! | |
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| At THE TOP!! | |
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| Steve and Dick, all smiles and taking "five." | |
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| Looking north -- view of Lassen and Lake Helen (right) from the top of Brokeoff | |
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| Looking northeast -- remnant of north slope of Mt. Tehama caldera and Hwy 89 below | |
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| Group foto with Lassen -- front: Steve, Dick, Herb, Geno; back: Ralph and Jay | |
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| Group foto with Mt. Shasta in background if you look close | |
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| View of Brokeoff Mt. (left peak) from Lake Helen looking southwest | |
| › hiking, page 2 of 2 | |
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