Lassen Volcanic National Park (Part 1) - California, USA

From 7/17/2013 to 8/2/2013, I took a road trip from the SF Bay Area to Vancouver, BC, Canada. Half of the trip was spent driving up the west coast. On my trip, I visited many famous places such as Seattle, Butchart Gardens, Mount Rainier, and much more. Obviously I got many coastal shots and many places that isn't as famous. The reason I am posting it now is because the high amount of photos I took equaled a high amount of processing time. I took a bit over 2000 photos on the trip. After stitching the panoramas, compositing the HDRs, and picking out photos from the repeats, I have a bit over 1000 photos to show you guys. The photos will be split into parts. I will link you to the previous and next parts on each post just like I did with my Death Valley National Park photos and my Yellowstone/Grand Teton National Park photos. Hope you enjoy viewing this chain of posts!

Full Resolution Photos and Prints: If you want to see full resolution photos or buy prints of any of the photos you see, they are up on my portfolio for viewing. To view my best Lassen Volcanic National Park photos, use this link. To view all of my day 16 photos, use this link.

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Today I have photos from Lassen Volcanic National Park in California, USA. Photos from this part will be split into 2 parts. In my opinion, Lassen Volcanic National Park feels a bit like a mini-Yellowstone. The park features many geothermal features and a volcano, Lassen Peak. Lassen Peak is the southernmost active volcano in the Cascade Range and the highest point in Lassen Volcanic National Park. The peak is about 5,229 ft (1,594 m) high. One of the most famous places in the park is Bumpass Hell (requires a bit of hiking) which includes many steam vents, mud pots, and hot springs.

Travel Advice: Please note if you are planning to visit this park or similar places (such as Yellowstone), please stay on the designated boardwalks around the geothermal areas! People has been burned alive after falling through the thin crust after going off trail! You have been warned. Also, these places aren't for the weak or frail. I had a headache for 2 days after visiting Lassen Volcanic National Park. I suspect I was mildly poisoned from all the sulfur fumes I breathed down while photographing the geothermal areas. You should try to minimize your exposure to the fumes. These are just advice from me. I am no doctor and all the recommendations are based solely off of personal experience. You follow the advice at your own risk. The photographer can not be held responsible for any injuries or death as result of following these advice.

First stop, Manzanita Lake inside Lassen Volcanic National Park near the entrance. 

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 32 15 N 121 34 14 W 

 Next photo is near Hot Rock also pretty close to the entrance. At Hot Rock, you can see a giant rock that fell out of the volcano... The lighting wasn't so good at the time, so I decided to get a shot of the forest behind it instead. 

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 32 06 N 121 29 26 W 

This is not Hot Rock but was at a view point near there. I think this was another volcanic rock that came out during an eruption. Can't remember too well. Gotta start taking notes in the field. HAHA

 Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 30 59 N 121 27 56 W 

Scenery inside the park. 

  Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 31 00 N 121 27 56 W 

 Still in that view point from the big rock above. I think these are a type of obsidian. Not too sure. 

 Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 30 57 N 121 27 59 W 

I now move away from the view point above and go to Summit Lake. The water was cold as usual. Not sure how those people are managing to swim in the lake...

  Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 29 38 N 121 25 27 W 

 Two photos from Upper Meadow. 

  Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 227 35 N 121 28 03 W 

 A photo shot near Kings Creek. 

  Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 28 30 N 121 30 21 W 

This photo is facing the Lassen Peak I was talking about the description at the beginning.  

  Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 28 30 N 121 30 21 W 

Photo from Lake Helen. 

 Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 28 02 N 121 30 32 W 

I now begin my hike into Bumpass Hell.

 Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 27 59 N 121 30 43 W 

 The trail of Bumpass Hell. 

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 27 39 N 121 30 30 W 

A arrive at the geothermal area of Bumpass Hell. Here is a steam vent. By the time I got there, it was near sunset. You will see quite some contrast and color differences in the photos shot here. 

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 27 27 N 121 30 11 W  

The hot springs in the area. 

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 27 27 N 121 30 10 W  

More photos from Bumpass Hell and the steam vents. Same location as above. 

The off flow of the hot springs in the area. 

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 40 27 26 N 121 30 08 W  

These are all the photos for today. I hope you have enjoyed viewing them. Next time I will continue with the rest of my photos from Lassen Volcanic National Park. Please don't forget to share the blog post with your friends and family members! Also, if you want to get notifications when I post up more photos, "Like" us on Facebook or follow me on Twitter and Instagram. These links can also be found on the top of the right sidebar.

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Lava Beds National Monument (Part 1) - Tulelake, CA

From 7/17/2013 to 8/2/2013, I took a road trip from the SF Bay Area to Vancouver, BC, Canada. Half of the trip was spent driving up the west coast. On my trip, I visited many famous places such as Seattle, Butchart Gardens, Mount Rainier, and much more. Obviously I got many coastal shots and many places that isn't as famous. The reason I am posting it now is because the high amount of photos I took equaled a high amount of processing time. I took a bit over 2000 photos on the trip. After stitching the panoramas, compositing the HDRs, and picking out photos from the repeats, I have a bit over 1000 photos to show you guys. The photos will be split into parts. I will link you to the previous and next parts on each post just like I did with my Death Valley National Park photos and my Yellowstone/Grand Teton National Park photos. Hope you enjoy viewing this chain of posts!

Full Resolution Photos and Prints: If you want to see full resolution photos or buy prints of any of the photos you see, they are up on my portfolio for viewing. To view my best Lava Beds National Monument photos, use this link. To view all of my day 15 photos, use this link.

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Today I have part 1 of Lava Beds National Monument with one photo from Tulelake, CA. Lava Beds National Monument is part of a volcanic system and contains many empty lava tubes (caves) that you can go down and explore. In the park, only one of the caves (Mushpot Cave) is lit. The other caves are pitch dark and will require flashlights to go exploring. The temperature in the caves are very cold, a great place to go on a hot summer day! If you want to explore something you haven't seen before, this is a good place! Just make sure you have a good flashlight. Photographing in the caves was also a very hard. At night, you can work with light from the moon, which will be bright enough if you expose long enough. In the caves, all light have to be created by you! The following cave shots were shot using a very very strong flashlight and my Canon Speedlite 600EX-RT.

Tulelake, CA borders Merril, OR. This is a photo of a farm and barn in Tulelake. I shot this along the border. As you can see the forest fires I told you about had engulfed the whole area with smoke. Our original plan was Shasta Lake, but decided against it because I know the smoke won't affect the caves at all.

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 41 59 55 N 121 33 48 W   

Black and white process of the photo above. 

Now at the entrance to Lava Beds National Monument.

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 41 49 50 N 121 33 22 W

Shot a photo of the scenery at the entrance.

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 41 49 51 N 121 33 22 W   

Black and white process of the photo above. 

First stop is the Devil's Homestead Flow, a giant lava field. I shot a few photos at this view point. The smoke from the surrounding forest fires is very heavy. 

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 41 47 35 N 121 33 43 W   

Black and white process of the photo above.

A zoomed in shot of the scenery. 

Black and white process of the photo above. 

A panorama of the view point area. 

A photo of another lava field in the park.

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 41 46 36 N 121 33 55 W 

HDR of the scenery in the park. 

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 41 44 35 N 121 32 41 W  

A photo of some obsidian near Mushpot Cave. If you are planning to visit the park, I suggest you drop by the visitor center before visiting any cave. I also recommend you borrow a flashlight from the visitor center. The flashlights are free for you to borrow. While their flashlights are dim and not too useful in the caves (so bring your own good one), the park rangers will have a record of you at the ranger station, so in case you get lost or injured in one of the caves, they'll know to look for you. In my opinion, their flashlights are crap, but I got one anyways so I know someone will come looking for me if I don't make it out. All flashlights have to be returned by the time the visitor center closes. 

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 41 42 49 N 121 30 32 W  

Another lava tube near the entrance to Mushpot Cave. You can see where the lava has flowed out before. 

Approximate GPS location (type into Google) according to the Canon GP-E2 GPS Receiver: 41 42 49 N 121 30 31 W

Mushpot Cave is the one nearest to the visitor center and as I have mentioned at the beginning, is the only cave in the park that has lights. The other caves are pitch dark. This cave is also have the shortest walk and great for little kids. If you are tall, please note some areas of the caves are low, so watch your head!

Black and white process of the photo above. 

I shifted the angle slightly and did another shot. 

Black and white process of the photo above.

The cave formations and the lights the park has set up for easy viewing. 

Here is a photo from the end of the trail in the Mushpot Cave. If you plan on doing photography, please be careful where you are flashing your flash! I photo bombed myself without realizing it. LOL 

Facing back at the trail from the end of the trail. 

Black and white process of the photo above. 

These are all the photos for today. I hope you have enjoyed viewing them. Next time I will continue with more of the photos from Lava Beds National Monument in Tulelake, CA. Please don't forget to share the blog post with your friends and family members! Also, if you want to get notifications when I post up more photos, "Like" us on Facebook or follow me on Twitter and Instagram. These links can also be found on the top of the right sidebar.

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