Just when we thought Lassen couldn’t get any better, it did. The thought of a drive across the entire park to reach the trailhead did not get us excited. However, after completing the journey, we were embarrassed that we had felt that way. Perhaps we were still smarting from the closure of the Lassen Peak Trail. The park has a serenity and beauty that is indescribable—it is a place of magnificent contrasts, too. In parts, one feels one is visiting paradise as a certain mystique presents itself.
Brokeoff Trail is some seven miles long with an elevation gain of 2600 feet, in half that distance. The climb is in fact 600 feet greater than Lassen Peak rising into the 9,000’s. The trail begins in the forest, winds around and heads towards the rear of the mountain, crossing streams and passing through meadows, always on an incline, mostly steep. After about two miles, one leaves the forest and is exposed to the valleys, distant mountains and lakes from the edge of the mountain. The climb is relentless. A ‘butt-kicker’, they rate it. We think it more of a ‘full frontal assault’ but then again, what do we know. Whatever the rating, it is a great hike and we loved every moment of it. They don’t get any better than this one.
We made it to the top in an hour and three quarters as we kept our eyes on the exquisite surroundings and the darkening clouds. The weather pattern is erratic in these parts, understandably so, of course, at altitudes of nine to ten thousand feet. Our editor had a good whine today, which is unusual. Far be it for us to criticize the quality of her whine. Normally, she doesn’t say much but tends to be quiet and instead, ‘stares daggers’ at us. Apparently, we were going too fast and this made her more vocal. Nevertheless, she proved she’s got what it takes. We have had two weeks of tough and rewarding hikes. We can’t even remember what we did the previous two weeks.
The views at the peak were breathtakingly spectacular. We viewed Lassen just a few miles away with painted dunes separating the two ‘beauties’, in the valleys. Once again we were rewarded in seeing our ‘old friend’ Mt. Shasta, over one hundred miles distant. It was reciprocal. Last week when we were on Shasta and Black Butte, we were able to see Mt. Lassen. It’s fascinating and exhilarating climbing these peaks and looking out at ‘the rest of the world’. Other views of hazy, blue mountains, lakes and an abundance of trees with sharp drop-offs along the edges, made for a stimulating day.
At the peak, we were fortunate to befriend Tricia and Theo. We joined them or they joined us or we joined each other and walked down the mountain like old friends. We thank them for a fascinating near two hours in which we swopped stories and learned much about other peoples’ experiences in the wilderness. Talking of coincidences, last week we were fortunate to be able to help a young woman with some medical supplies for a severe blister. At the peak, we recognized her and she was jolted by our accents. Seven people on the trail and of those, four were together at Shasta ‘Horse Camp’ five days earlier. It seems that the odds of something like that happening are almost impossible.
We left Lassen knowing that like General MacArthur: ‘We’ll return’ (in much easier circumstances). We arrived at Red Bluff (not kidding) in good time to set up early for the Sabbath. We enjoyed another fantastic week, B’H.
Cheers,
Jenni and Jeffrey
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