Chaos Crags
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Chaos Crags rises to 2,567 m in California. Lassen Peak stands 3,187 m to the south-southeast, 2.6 miles off. The nearest named place is Krummholz Dome, a peak 0.5 miles away.
The story
Chaos Crags is the youngest group of lava domes in Lassen Volcanic National Park, California. They formed as six dacite domes about 1,000 years ago, one dome collapsing during an explosive eruption about 70 years later. The eruptions at the Chaos Crags mark one of just three instances of Holocene activity within the Lassen volcanic center. The cluster of domes is located north of Lassen Peak and form part of the southernmost segment of the Cascade Range in Northern California. Each year, a lake forms at the base of the Crags, and typically dries by the end of the summer season. From the base of the crags and extending toward the northwest corner of the park is Chaos Jumbles, a rock avalanche that undermined Chaos Crags' northwest slope 300 years ago. Riding on a cushion of compressed air (see sturzstrom), the rock debris traveled at about 100 miles per hour (160 km/h), flattened the forest before it, and dammed Manzanita Creek, forming Manzanita Lake. In addition to the possibility of forming additional lava domes, future activity at the Chaos Crags could pose hazards from pumice, pyroclastic flows, or rockfalls. Geological study of the Chaos Crags, which continues today, began in the late 1920s, when Howel Williams wrote about its pyroclastic rock deposits, rockfall avalanches, and eruptions. The area is monitored for rockslide threats, which could threaten the local area. The Crags and the surrounding area's lakes and forests support numerous plant and animal species. The area is not a popular destination for visitors, despite its accessibility. The Chaos Crags and Crags Lake Trail, which lasts about three hours round-trip, offers views of volcanic phenomena nearby, as well as the Hat Creek valley and the Thousand Lakes Wilderness.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikidata Q2956453, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What the record says
- Elevation
- 2567 m
How to reach it
Named places within 25 miles
- Krummholz Dome: 0.5 mi
- Chaos Crater: 0.6 mi
- Crescent Crater: 1.9 mi
- Lassen Peak: 2.6 mi
- Survivors Hill: 2.7 mi
- Old Boundary Spring: 2.2 mi
- Onion Springs: 3.5 mi
- Cold Boiling Spring: 5.1 mi
- Supans Springs: 5.2 mi
- Tophet Springs: 5.2 mi
- Crescent Cliff: 2.6 mi
- Red Cliff: 12.6 mi
- Crystal Cliffs: 12.6 mi
- Palisade Cliff: 12.8 mi
- Gray Cliff: 12.8 mi
- Hot Rock: 1.8 mi
- Seismograph: 2.3 mi
- Devastated Area: 3.0 mi
- Bumpass Hell: 4.7 mi
- Sulphur Works: 5.2 mi
- Mill Creek Falls: 5.8 mi
- Kings Creek Falls: 6.2 mi
- Bluff Falls: 7.7 mi
- Deadhorse Falls: 18.6 mi
- Deer Creek Falls: 22.3 mi
- Turquoise Pool: 4.7 mi
- Big Boiler: 4.7 mi
- Pyrite Pool: 4.8 mi
- Drakesbad Hot Springs: 8.4 mi
- Terminal Geyser: 10.4 mi
- Kings Creek Picnic Area: 5.1 mi
- Hat Creek Campground Picnic Area: 10.7 mi
- Old Station Day Use Area: 11.1 mi
- Elam Picnic Area: 19.5 mi
- Meadow Park: 19.2 mi
- Chester Park: 21.3 mi
- Dig It Meadow: 21.8 mi
- Swain Mountain Experimental Forest: 22.6 mi
- Shingletown Rest Area: 16.3 mi
- Bogard Rest Area: 21.6 mi
- Lake Almanor Rest Area: 24.3 mi
- Lassen Volcanic National Park: 6.1 mi
- Deer Creek Preserve: 24.9 mi
- Mount Harkness Lookout: 13.3 mi
- Fort Maxwell: 14.9 mi
- Totem Pole: 19.2 mi
- Chester-Lake Almanor Museum: 21.4 mi
- Catfish Beach: 23.4 mi
Other summits around it
The highest named summits within 12.3 miles of Chaos Crags. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lassen Peak | SSE 160° | 3,187 m | 2.6 mi |
| Brokeoff Mountain | SSW 200° | 2,814 m | 5.8 mi |
| Eagle Peak | S 177° | 2,811 m | 3.2 mi |
| Mount Diller | SSW 196° | 2,750 m | 4.3 mi |
| Ski Heil Peak | S 180° | 2,721 m | 3.5 mi |
| Mount Helen | SSE 165° | 2,694 m | 3.8 mi |
| Pilot Pinnacle | S 188° | 2,672 m | 3.9 mi |
| Bumpass Mountain | SSE 164° | 2,664 m | 4.5 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:10 | 18:42 | 19:18 |
| June solstice | 05:36 | 20:00 | 20:41 |
| September equinox | 06:54 | 18:29 | 19:05 |
| December solstice | 07:27 | 16:00 | 16:43 |
Local time (America/Los_Angeles).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: Jun–Sep.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 32 | 32 | 35 | 39 | 48 | 55 | 63 | 62 | 57 | 46 | 37 | 31 |
| Precip in | 6.5 | 5.5 | 6.4 | 4.3 | 2.9 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 2.7 | 4.7 | 6.5 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Manzanita Lake, 3 mi away.
Inside the official boundary of Lassen Volcanic National Park. Quietest months by visitation: Dec and Mar; busiest: Jul.
NPS visitation statistics, monthly averages 2021–2025 (2020 excluded).
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikidataOpenStreetMap element node/358806231
Day trips start here
- Lassen Volcanic National Park · 6 mi
- Shingletown · 18 mi
Take the scenic way to Chaos Crags.
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