Click on the Lassen Peak Alpenglow image to enlarge

Lassen Peak Alpenglow

Lassen Peak Alpenglow is a photograph taken on an early summer morning from the Devastated Area of the Lassen Volcanic National Park.

Lassen Peak is the southernmost Volcano of the Cascades Range.  It is the largest plug-dome volcano in the world.  Lassen Volcanic National Park started as two separate national monuments designated by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1907; Cinder Cone National Monument and Lassen Peak National Monument.

The Devastated Area is a location along the park road that has been denuded of vegetation from eruptions of the volcano.  It is an interesting area to see the geology of this volcanic area.  Views of the eastern side of Lassen Peak are excellent in this location of the park.

The 29-mile Main Park Road was constructed between 1925 and 1931, after Lassen Peak erupted. Near Lassen Peak the road reaches 8,512 feet, making it the highest road in the Cascade Mountains. It is not unusual for 40 ft of snow to accumulate on sections of the road and for patches of snow to last into July.  This picture was taken when there was still plenty of snow on Lassen Peak.

Lassen Peak was named after Peter Lassen a Danish immigrant who was a blacksmith.  Lassen settled in Northern California in 1840 and became a rancher.  Lassen is famous for for establishing the Lassen Cutoff of the California Trail, which left the main trail near the modern-day Rye Patch Reservoir and crossed a desolate section of what is now northwestern Nevada, including the Black Rock Desert.

Lassen Peak was used as a landmark for immigrants on their journeys into the Sacramento Valley.

Starting in May 1914 and lasting until 1921, a series of minor to major eruptions occurred on Lassen. Because of the eruptive activity and the area’s stark volcanic beauty, Lassen Peak, Cinder Cone and the area surrounding were declared a National Park on August 9, 1916.

Lassen Peak Alpenglow is a great way to start a morning along the Lassen Volcanic National Park Road.