Day 1 cont'd: Mt. Lassen (Bumpass Hell Trail)

During our visit to Lassen, we had a nice little hike on the Bumpass Hell Trail.  The trail starts near the peak, and winds down to one of Lassen's two most active geothermal areas.  There are steam vents, and an area of literally boiling mudpots.  (You can see the steam rising in several of the pictures below.)  The park service has built a boardwalk so you can walk out over the mudpots, but signs everywhere warn people not to stray from the trail, and mention how many people have been seriously burned by leaving the trail and falling into the mud.  The smell of sulfur is quite strong in this area, as you might imagine.