Lassen Volcanic National Park: Tribes, Trappers, Pioneers, And Eruptions

Above, a view of Lassen Peak from Devastated Area in 2017. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The first national park I visited was when I was at age 14 with my parents in 1968. It was Lassen Volcanic National Park in Northern California. 

That got me hooked on traveling to national parks over the succeeding years. I visited Lassen again in 2017 during my Great American Eclipse trip. I camped at the Manzanita Lake Campground in my motorhome. 

Above, my campsite at Manzanita Lake Campground in 2017. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

National Parks Traveler posted an article on how Lassen became a national park due to eruptions of Lassen Peak in the early 20th Century.

They start it with:

Native American tribes, fur trappers, pioneers, and prospectors have all wandered around and within the boundaries of what is now Lassen Volcanic National Park in California. Before it was a national park, though, the landscape consisted of two separate national monuments. It took a series of Lassen Peak eruptions between 1914 – 1917 to make national park establishment a “done deal.”

 To read more, go here.

Congress Passes Bill To Rescind Need For Filming Permit In National Parks

Above, Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Two days ago, I posted about two photographers who filed suit against the National Park Service over the requirement to have a permit to film or photograph commercially in Grand Teton National Park.

As luck would have it, a bill rescinding that permit requirement for national parks has passed the congress and is headed to His Fraudulency Joe Biden's desk for signature.

National Parks Traveler reported:

In a big win for filmmakers, a provision in the EXPLORE Act, passed yesterday [Thursday] by the Senate and headed for President Biden's desk soon, eliminates the need for photographers and videographers to secure permits to film, even for commercial purposes, in national parks.

This comes just a day after a lawsuit challenging the NPS ban on commercial photography in the parks was filed by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) a conservative-leaning free speech advocacy group, on behalf of adventure filmmakers Alexander Rienzie and Connor Burkesmith. Rienzie and Burkesmith were attempting to film an attempt to set the FKT for ascending the Grand Teton earlier this fall and were refused a permit. The National Press Photographers Association joined the lawsuit. 

To read more, go here. 

Top 10 Things To Know About Yellowstone National Park

Above, Lower Yellowstone Falls and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Summer vacation season is fast approaching and people will be taking vacations to different national parks.

National Parks Traveler has posted a list of top ten things to know about Yellowstone National Park, primarily located in the northwest corner of Wyoming. 

They begin with:

If you plan to travel to Yellowstone National Park this summer, plan ahead to protect yourself and this wild and awe-inspiring place. Within the park’s 2.2 million acres, visitors have unparalleled opportunities to observe wildlife in an intact ecosystem, explore geothermal areas that contain half the world’s active geysers and view geologic wonders like the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River.

Follow the top 10 things to know to enjoy your visit and protect the park for generations to come:

To read more, go here. 

National Parks Traveler To Stay In Business

Above, low clouds in Yosemite Valley. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Some good news showed up in my email news feed this morning.

National Parks Traveler news site will stay in operation.

They wrote:

Just months after it looked like the National Parks Traveler would cease after 18 years due to insufficient funding, readers, listeners, sponsors, and underwriters have provided enough financial support to keep the news organization in operation. 

Our readers and donors look to the Traveler for daily journalism on issues, science, exploration, travel, and park news. No other news organization focuses solely on national parks and protected areas, resulting in a unique blend of editorially independent coverage that led to an outpouring of support when it looked like the site would go dark at the end of June.

We’re not completely out of the woods, but the support will enable continued news coverage while we work to further solidify the Traveler’s financial footing. If you can help with that, please drop us a line.

To read more, go here. 

Planning And Preparing For A National Park Trip

Above, North Pines Campground in Yosemite Valley in 2016. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Since I was a teen of 14, I have been to numerous national parks over the years. Planning for a national vacation (usually camping) had become second nature and since I have a motorhome, I don't have to pack so much as most of what I need is already in the RV.

Planning and preparing for a national park trip is the topic of an article in National Park Traveler. It has many tips what are useful.

It begins with:

During my February visit to Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in Colorado, I remember sitting in the rental car after braving that incessant, freezing winter wind, eating a snack and thawing out with hot coffee from a thermos. Scanning the parking area, I noticed a young couple in their 20s parked beside me preparing to explore the area. Unlike me, covered head to toe in wool and insulated down and looking like a colorful version of the Michelin Man, this young man wore flared jeans and a jean jacket over his hoodie. His travel partner wore a hoodie over her multi-colored Lycra tights. Both wore sneakers. Each threw a blanket over themselves before advancing into that wall of freezing wind. I’m not certain 10 minutes even passed before I saw those same two scurrying back to clamber into their vehicle and drive away. Were they just acting on a spontaneous whim to quickly check out Great Sand Dunes, or had they intended a further exploration, realizing too late they had not thoroughly planned for winter’s bone-chilling elements?

Nowadays, a visit to a unit of the National Park System requires at least a minimal amount of planning and preparation. Some park units require timed entry reservations, lodging and campsite spots fill up faster, tours sell out quickly, and available rental vehicles might be hard to come by for a specific date. Whether you fly, drive, cruise, or ride the rails, planning ahead for your national park travel avoids these above-mentioned issues and ensures a smoother, more enjoyable stay.

To read more, go here. 

National Park Service Sued Over Cashless Policies

Above, the South Entrance gate to Yellowstone National Park. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

What part of the U.S. dollar's being "legal tender" does the National Park Service not understand? 

Apparently, several parks (maybe all of them) under the National Park Service are refusing cash from visitors and are only accepting credit or debit cards. This has led to three lawsuits (at this time).

National Parks Traveler reported:

The National Park Service's increasing move to only accept credit cards for entrance to parks has driven three visitors to sue the agency, saying its policy is unreasonable and an abuse of discretion and that federal law states that legal tender is suitable "for all public charges."

Esther van der Werf of Ojai, California, Toby Stover, of High Falls, New York, and Elizabeth Dasburg, of Darien, Georgia, brought the lawsuit [attached below] earlier this month after being told their U.S. currency would not be accepted for entry into Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Tonto National Monument, Saguaro National Park, Roosevelt-Vanderbilt National Historic Site, and Fort Pulaski National Monument.

"NPS’s violation of federal law cannot be overlooked in favor of any purported benefit NPS cashless could hope to achieve, such as reducing logistics of handling cash collected," reads a section of the lawsuit. "Moreover, there is an increased cost to the NPS in going cashless, such as additional processing fees that will be borne by NPS and by visitors who ultimately fund the federal government through taxes, in addition to personal surcharges and bank fees visitors may incur under NPS cashless policy.

"However, plaintiffs do not ask the court to prohibit NPS from accepting credit cards, debit cards, or digital payment methods (such as ApplePay) should visitors to NPS sites prefer to use them. Rather, plaintiffs ask the court to restore entrance to NPS sites to those who cannot access non-cash payment methods (and those who choose not to) by declaring NPS cashless to be unlawful."

Us "geezers" don't have to worry about this as our national park Senior Pass gets us in without having to pay anything. Still, I agree that the NPS should also accept cash for entry fees.

To read more, go here. 

Yellowstone Approaching Spring Season

Above, Lower Yellowstone Falls. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Yellowstone National Park is a playground for winter sports activities such as snowmobiles, snowcoaches and skiing.

But the winter season is nearing its end and the park will be gearing up for the spring season.

According to National Parks Traveler:

Yellowstone National Park’s winter season wraps up early March as roads begin to close to snowmobile and snowcoach travel. By March 16, most visitor services and park roads will be closed including the South, West and East entrances. The park annually closes most roads at this time of year to prepare them for a spring opening for the public. 

To read more, go here. 

Spruce Tree House Stabilization Plan Identified

Above, Spruce Tree House in September 2020. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The Spruce Tree House in Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado has been in a precarious state for the past several years. The arch above it has become destabilized due to weather and erosion and has been closed to the public since 2015.

A plan to stabilize the arch has been decided by the National Park Service. All that is needed are funds to implement the plan.

According to National Parks Traveler:

While the National Park Service has identified a plan to allow Spruce Tree House at Mesa Verde National Park to be stabilized and reopened to the public, funding for the work has not yet been identified.

The popular attraction, which houses the third-largest cliff dwelling in the park in western Colorado, with 130 rooms and eight kivas, has been closed to the public since October 2015 because of concerns that layers of sandstone could peel away from the arch at any time and fall on bystanders below. Spruce Tree House may be seen, however, from an overlook near the Chapin Mesa Museum. 

Back in 2016, the Park Service pointed out that "[E]arly stabilization work was performed (on the arch) in the 1940s, with additional stabilization work completed in the 1960s. Natural erosion processes, including the settling of the arch, have been affected by the early stabilization work, so that modern engineering techniques may be necessary to ensure continued stability of the arch."

To read more, go here. 

How Many NPS Websites Are You Familiar With?

Above, the Colorado River carving the Grand Canyon. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

National Park Service (NPS) websites come in handy for trip planning and general information. As it turns out, there are many NPS websites to peruse. Chances are, many people aren't even aware of them.

National Parks Traveler has posted an article on, "How many NPS websites are you aware of?"

It begins with:

There are more National Park Service websites than you can possibly imagine. Really. You'll find no site map on the agency's main website, so there's really nothing you can do but hunt and poke and stumble around to see what's out there.

After 18 years of the National Parks Traveler, I continue to run across new ones. Let's take a look at some of them that you might not be aware of.

To read more, go here.

National Parks Traveler Shutting Down At End of Year

Sad news this morning.

National Parks Traveler will be shutting down after this coming December 31. According to a post this morning, they have been unsuccessful in raising the funding to keep their operations going.

They have been a great source for information on our national parks over the years.

They posted:

After 18 years of continuous coverage of the U.S. National Park System and the National Park Service, and the issues relating to them —Essential Coverage for Essential Places— the National Park Traveler will go dark after December 31, 2023.

Since 2005 Kurt Repanshek, founder and editor-in-chief of the Traveler, and the news organization’s contributing writers, photographers, and broadcasters have visited parks across the United States and Canada to dive into the heart of stories big and small. We've brought you stories ranging from search-and-rescue operations, climate-change impacts on the parks, and over-crowding issues to questionable institutional decision-making, land-management conflicts, and how to make the most out of your national park adventures.

It is not that the Traveler wants to cease reporting; rather, it is that we have been unable to raise the support necessary to hire and retain both the editorial, fundraising, and support staff and services necessary to run an editorially independent nonprofit news operation. However, if another organization would like to take this on, we would be glad to talk to them.

To read more, go here. 

The National Parks' Lodging Problem

Above, how does $600/night to stay at Yellowstone's Old Faithful Inn sound to you? Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Years ago, my family and I stayed at Zion National Park Lodge and Bryce Canyon National Park Lodge. At the time, I never heard any complaints of any high lodging prices from my parents.

But that was then.

Today, concessionaires who run national park hotels and lodges seem to be gouging the public with outrageous prices of accommodations.

The National Parks Traveler reported:

There are, across the National Park System, rising lodging rates that likely block a wide segment of Americans from experiencing a night or two in the some of the system's most iconic lodges and cabins. Places like Lake Hotel and the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone, El Tovar at the Grand Canyon, the Ahwahnee in Yosemite, Cavallo Point at Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Jenny Lake Lodge in Grand Teton, the Many Glacier Hotel in Glacier.

These are places where nightly rates can quickly climb past $400, with some approaching and surpassing $1,000 a night, depending on the season and occasion. And with the National Park Service's willingness to allow concessionaires to charge whatever the market will bear for some accommodations, rates will only go higher.

But where do you — can you? — strike a balance between a company's right to make a profit and the right of Americans to visit the national parks their tax dollars help support?

That question surfaces in the wake of a story from WyoFile, a nonprofit news organization in Wyoming, that looked at the cost of spending a night in one of the historic lodges in Yellowstone National Park. In roughly half the lodging rooms in the park, at the Old Faithful Inn, Lake Hotel, and Canyon Village, the Park Service lets concessionaire charge whatever they can get. That approach has led to dizzying nightly rates that have climbed above $400 a night — a 55 percent increase in just the past five years — at the historic Old Faithful Inn, according to WyoFile.

"Sadly the average American will be priced out of our national parks," wrote one Traveler follower on Facebook after reading the Wyofile story.

The practice to let concessionaires charge whatever they like for some lodgings dates at least to 2017, when it surfaced at Yellowstone as part of an unannounced five-year pilot project.

To read more, go here. 

Indigenous People Were Never “Afraid” Of Yellowstone

Above, indigenous people lived in Yellowstone and used its resources for thousands of years. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Many moons ago, the myth got started that indigenous people were "afraid" of the area that is now known as Yellowstone National Park.

There is evidence that indigenous people actually lived within the area.

National Parks Traveler has posted an article showing how this myth is totally untrue.

They begin with:

A long-told myth about Yellowstone is that indigenous people were “afraid” of the area owing to the geysers and thermal activity. But archaeological evidence and oral histories and even an early map throw cold water on this story.

The Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804–1806 never entered the Yellowstone area, although they were tantalizingly close—on the return journey from the Pacific Ocean, a group led by Captain William Clark passed through present-day Livingston and journeyed down the Yellowstone River from that point. Nevertheless, in Clark’s journal of the expedition, in a section labeled “Notes of Information I believe Correct,” the following passage appears regarding the Yellowstone River:

"At the head of this river the nativs give an account that there is frequently herd a loud noise, like Thunder, which makes the earth Tremble, they State that they seldom go there because their children Cannot sleep—and Conceive it possessed of spirits, who were averse that men Should be near them."

This statement is one of the first mentions of the Yellowstone area by Euro-Americans, and also the first suggestion that indigenous people were somehow afraid of the region. Curiously, the passage was not written at the time of the exploration, but some years later, and it is unclear where Clark obtained this information.

Regardless of from where and when the information arrived with Clark, it’s wrong. Indigenous people have never been afraid of Yellowstone, and in fact lived in the area and used its resources for thousands of years. The evidence for this long association with the Yellowstone region comes from written, oral, and archeological records.

To read more, go here. 

National Parks Remain Open Through Mid-November

Above, Yellowstone's Old Faithful Inn. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The compromise funding agreement will allow the national parks to remain open, at least through mid-November.

According to National Parks Traveler:

An 11th-hour compromise Saturday averted a shutdown of the federal government for at least 45 days, allowing the National Park System to remain open through one of the most popular tourist seasons of the year.

With the agreement, reached by the House on Saturday afternoon, approved by the Senate that evening, and sent to President Biden for his signature, the Congress bought time to try to come to terms on government funding for Fiscal 2024, which opens October 1. As a result, the National Park System will remain open at least through mid-November, allowing for Fat Bear Week to run at Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska, enabling leaf-peepers to flock to the hardwood forests of Great Smoky Mountains, Shenandoah, and Acadia national parks to marvel at fall's vibrant coat of leaves, and allowing tens of thousands of sky gazers to flock to the National Park System from Oregon through Texas to catch the annular solar eclipse on October 14.

Just in case an agreement on the Continuing Resolution wasn't reached, officials in Utah and Arizona were prepared to keep national parks in their states open with state funding, and Colorado officials were working to do the same.

To read more, go here. 

Grand Canyon National Park To Get New Shuttle Fleet

Above, one of the aging Grand Canyon shuttle buses to be replaced. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Grand Canyon National Park will be getting a new fleet of shuttle buses to replace the aging ones the park is now using.

According to National Parks Traveler:

A new shuttle bus fleet is coming to Grand Canyon National Park thanks to a grant of $27.5 million from the U.S. Transportation Department's Federal Highway Administration.

The funding will help pay for 30 new buses, including 10 battery electric buses and 20 compressed natural gas buses, to replace the current aging fleet. It also will cover installation of charging infrastructure to support the new electric buses. An estimated 6 million people visit the park each year and use the free shuttle buses to access destinations throughout the Grand Canyon.

The project is one of seven to receive federal grants totaling $130.5 million under FHWA’s Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Transportation Projects Program. 

The shuttle bus system at Grand Canyon National Park was handy for us back in 2017 when we camped at Trailer Village at the South Rim. The bus stop was located at the campground's main entrance.

To read more, go here. 

Lassen Highway Now Open

Above, The Beast on the Lassen highway in 2017. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Here we are in July and only now the 30-mile highway through Lassen Volcanic National Park in northern California is open.

Above, Manzanita Lake Campground is open. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

As the following article snippet from National Parks Traveler states, Lassen sustained a higher-than-normal snowpack and it took road crews longer to clear it.

They wrote:

The 30-mile highway through Lassen Volcanic National Park in northern California has opened for the summer season, though sections might seem like winter. A higher-than-average snowpack slowed operations, but through the hard work of National Park Service and Caltrans road crews, the road has been fully cleared. Visitors to the park should prepare for winter conditions at higher elevations, and possible delays due to ongoing road work.

Intermittent closures along the highway are possible due to repair work, as well as inclement weather. You should check the weather forecast before traveling. In other areas of the park, the road to Butte Lake is open; Warner Valley Road is closed to vehicles, but open to bikers and hikers; and Juniper Lake Road remains closed to all traffic at the park boundary due to post-Dixie Fire hazards.  

Campground openings have been delayed due to snow, snow damage, and hazard trees, but some are open. Manzanita Lake Campground, cabins, and the Camper Store are open.

Above, Manzanita Lake Camper Store in 2017. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

To read more, go here. 

Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks App

For those RVers who could use an assist or two while driving to the national parks, National Parks Traveler will soon have a new phone app for making the drive a lot easier.

According to their website:

Last year the National Parks Traveler debuted its Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks in eBook and PDF formats. Soon you'll be able to download an app of the guide to your phone.

For more, go here. 

2023 National Park Entrance Fee-Free Days

Above, a bull elk wanders near Trailer Village at Grand Canyon National Park. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

For those who have not been to a national park or don't want to shell out some cash to enter one, here are the fee-free days for 2023.

From National Park Traveler:

The National Park Service will have five  entrance fee-free days  in 2023 that provide free admittance to all national parks for everyone.

The  free entrance dates for 2023  are:  

• January 16 – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day  
• April 22 – First Day of National Park Week  
• August 4 – Great American Outdoors Day  
• September 23 – National Public Lands Day  
• November 11 – Veterans Day  

“National parks are really amazing places and we want everyone to experience them,” said  National Park Service Director Chuck  Sams. “The entrance fee-free days encourage people to discover the beauty, history and inspiration awaiting them in more than 400 national parks throughout the country.” 

To read more, go here. 

National Parks Traveler Checklist: Lassen Volcanic National Park

Above, Lassen Peak from Devastated Area in 2017. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The very first national park I ever visited was Lassen Volcanic National Park in 1968 with my parents. We camped in an umbrella tent at Manzanita Lake Campground.

I returned to Lassen Volcanic National Park in 2017 during my Great American Eclipse trip in 2017 and, again, camped at Manzanita Lake Campground. This time, it was in my motorhome. It was easy to get a campsite. 

Above, at Manzanita Lake Campground. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

National Parks Traveler has posted a checklist for Lassen Volcanic National Park.

They begin it with:

While Lassen Volcanic National Park might once have been an undiscovered gem, according to Lassen’s superintendent Jim Richardson, it’s now a discovered gem. Smaller than say, Yosemite or Yellowstone, with parts still closed due to the 2021 Dixie Fire, Lassen should still be a destination on your national park bucket list. You can hike to the top of a cinder cone for amazing views in every direction, walk alongside hydrothermal wonders of hot springs, bubbling mud pots, and steaming fumaroles, and hike to the summit of one of the largest plug dome volcanoes in the world. You can walk around a quiet lake frequented by Canada geese, blue herons and other waterfowl over which Lassen Peak and Chaos Crags tower, gaze up at the sparkling night sky with little to no light pollution, and drive a park highway listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

All set for a visit? The National Parks Traveler Checklist for Lassen Volcanic National Park should help you with your plans.

 To read more, go here.

Navigating Yellowstone National Park This Summer Update

Above, one of many geothermal attractions within Yellowstone. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Labor Day is only days away and that essentially marks the end of the summer vacation season.

Yellowstone National Park, if one is still planning to go there before the end of the month, had a disastrous start of the season with the floods of June and National Parks Traveler has posted an update to navigating the park.

They start it with:

Visitors to Yellowstone National Park should check the park's website in advance of their travels to learn what's accessible and what isn't. For instance, as of September 8 you'll no longer need to obtain a day-use ticket to drive the 6-mile road corridor between Tower Junction and Slough Creek.

The park piloted the day-use program Aug. 3 to expand access to this impacted area in the northern part of Yellowstone following the historic flood event in June. After closely monitoring use in the area, the park found the corridor could safely maintain an increase in day-use capacity.  

That said, the road corridor is essentially a dead-end, and people driving large vehicles (buses, long towing units etc.) are asked to be aware that turnaround areas along the Slough Creek Campground Road are limited.  

The only section of the Northeast Entrance Road open is from Tower Junction to Slough Creek. The remainder of the Northeast Entrance Road (Lamar Valley east to the barrier near Warm Creek) is closed to all traffic due to significant flood damage. The North (Gardiner, Montana) and Northeast (Cooke City/Silver Gate, Montana) entrances are closed with limited access (see below) due to significant flood damage. Visitors wanting to drive the Tower Junction to Slough Creek road corridor will need to enter the park through the West, South, or East entrances. 

To read the full update, go here. 

Lodges, Campgrounds In Yellowstone Reopening

Above, Old Faithful Inn is one of the lodges reopening. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Some of the lodges and campgrounds are reopening in Yellowstone National Park following last month's devastating floods.

National Parks Traveler reported:

With most roads in Yellowstone National Park having reopened following last month's devastating flooding, and with no restrictions on entering the park, many of the park's lodges and campgrounds have reopened.

According to Yellowstone National Park Lodges, a division of Xanterra Travel Collection, here's the latest status on lodging and camping in the park:

• Seven of nine Yellowstone National Park Lodges along with all five Xanterra-operated campgrounds are open to serve guests and visitors, offering overnight lodging, camping, dining, gift shops and tours. These include Canyon Lodge & Cabins, Lake Yellowstone Hotel & Cabins, Lake Lodge Cabins, Grant Village, Old Faithful Inn, Old Faithful Lodge, Old Faithful Snow Lodge, Madison Campground, Bridge Bay Campground, Grant Campground, Canyon Campground and Fishing Bridge RV Park. 

To read more, go here.