California Official Visitor's Guide 2018 - 187

McArthur-Burney Falls
Memorial State Park

ROAD TRIP

Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway
RAMBLE THROUGH A LAND OF GEOLOGIC AND WATERY
WONDERS ON THIS VOLCANO-INSPIRED DRIVE
raversing the Cascade Range,
the Volcanic Legacy Scenic
Byway reveals Northern
California's fiery past. Eons of
eruptions and lava flows have
created a dramatic landscape of massive
volcanoes, lava tube caves, spatter cones,
and waterfalls tumbling over basalt cliffs.
Start in the town of Chester near Lake
Almanor, where warm water temperatures
attract water skiers and wakeboarders
for summertime fun. Take State Highway
89 through Childs Meadow to Lassen
Volcanic National Park. Get schooled
on Lassen Peak's explosive 1915 eruption
at the Kohm Yah-mah-nee Visitor Center
near the park's southwest entrance,
then continue north. As the cone-shaped
volcano dominates your view through the
windshield, wind your way up the park
road to Bumpass Hell and stretch your
legs with an easy one-hour walk among
hydrothermal marvels-16 acres of boiling
springs, hissing steam vents, noisy fumaroles, and bubbling mud pots. Hardy hikers
should trek to Lassen Peak's now dormant
summit crater. At day's end, spend the
night in a cabin near Manzanita Lake and
stay up late to watch Lassen's dazzling
star show. Far from city lights, the Milky
Way illuminates the night sky.

OPPOSITE PAGE: DREW KELLY; THIS PAGE, FROM TOP: SCOTT
MCGUIRE/SHUTTERSTOCK, THOMAS CHAMBERLIN/ALAMY

T

Lower Klamath National
Wildlife Refuge

The next morning, exit the park and
head for Old Station. Carry a flashlight
and a jacket to explore the underground
world of Subway Cave, a pitch-black tunnel formed by a 20,000-year-old lava flow.
Anglers and river ramblers can access Hat
Creek, one of the West's best fly-fishing
streams, across from Cave Campground.
Continuing north to McArthur-Burney
Falls Memorial State Park, watch spectacular Burney Falls make a world-class
splash with its mighty 129-foot drop. Stroll

to the waterfall's base and be mesmerized
by its shimmery veil cascading over dark
basalt. Then stay on Highway 89 as it curls
north through a dense red fir forest to the
upscale logging town of McCloud-a worthy stop for its historic inns and charming
restaurants. Cruise north on Interstate 5
toward Mount Shasta, California's
fifth-highest peak at 14,179 feet and the
uncontested diva of the state's northern
landscape. Ascend its majestic slopes by
driving Everett Memorial Highway from
downtown Mount Shasta city. In winter,
ski or snowshoe at Bunny Flat, and in
summer, hike the Horse Camp Trail amid
mountain wildflowers.
When your wheels hit Weed, leave I-5
and follow State Highway 97 northeast to
the Living Memorial Sculpture Garden,
where 11 striking metal sculptures honor
America's veterans. Near the California
border at Dorris, make a side trip on
State Highway 161 to the Lower Klamath
National Wildlife Refuge, home of the
largest concentration of wintering bald
eagles in the continental U.S. They're
joined by more than 260 other bird species-including white pelicans, peregrine
falcons, and snow geese-who pause here
as they journey along the Pacific Flyway in
fall and winter.

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of California Official Visitor's Guide 2018
