Lassen Peak
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Lassen Peak rises to 3,187 m in California. Brokeoff Mountain stands 2,814 m to the southwest, 4.1 miles off. The nearest named place is Eagle Peak, a peak 1.1 miles away.
The story
Lassen Peak ( LASS-ən), commonly referred to as Mount Lassen, is a 10,457-foot (3,187 m) lava dome volcano in Lassen Volcanic National Park in Northern California. Located in the Shasta Cascade region above the northern Sacramento Valley, it is the southernmost active volcano in the Cascade Range of the Western United States, and part of the Cascade Volcanic Arc stretching from southwestern British Columbia to Northern California. It supports many flora and fauna among its diverse habitats, which reach high elevations and are subject to frequent snowfall. Lassen Peak has a volume of 0.6 cu mi (2.5 km3), making it the largest lava domes on Earth. The volcano arose from the former northern flank of now-eroded Mount Tehama about 27,000 years ago, from a series of eruptions over the course of a few years. The mountain has been significantly eroded by glaciers over the last 25,000 years, and is now covered in talus deposits. On May 22, 1915, a powerful explosive eruption at Lassen Peak devastated nearby areas, and spread volcanic ash as far as 280 mi (450 km) to the east. This explosion was the most powerful in a series of eruptions from 1914 through 1917. Lassen Peak and Mount St. Helens in Washington were the only two volcanoes within the contiguous United States to erupt during the 20th century. Lassen Volcanic National Park, which encompasses an area of 106,372 acres (430.47 km2), was created to preserve the areas affected by the eruption for future observation and study, to protect the nearby volcanic features, and to keep anyone from settling too close to the mountain. The park, along with the nearby Lassen National Forest and Lassen Peak, have become popular destinations for recreational activities, including climbing, hiking, backpacking, snowshoeing, kayaking, and backcountry skiing. Lassen Peak is dormant, meaning the volcano is merely inactive, and it has a functioning magma chamber under the ground still capable of eruptions. Thus it poses a threat to the nearby area through lava flows, pyroclastic flows, lahars (volcanically induced mudslides, landslides, and debris flows), ash, avalanches, and floods. To monitor this threat, Lassen Peak and the surrounding vicinity are closely observed with sensors by the California Volcano Observatory.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikidata Q859354, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What the record says
- Elevation
- 3187 m
How to reach it
Named places within 25 miles
- Eagle Peak: 1.1 mi
- Mount Helen: 1.2 mi
- Crescent Crater: 1.3 mi
- Ski Heil Peak: 1.4 mi
- Vulcans Castle: 1.4 mi
- Cold Boiling Spring: 2.5 mi
- Old Boundary Spring: 2.7 mi
- Supans Springs: 3.1 mi
- Tophet Springs: 3.1 mi
- Cascade Springs: 3.5 mi
- Crescent Cliff: 1.3 mi
- Crystal Cliffs: 11.2 mi
- Warner Valley Rim: 11.8 mi
- Palisade Cliff: 14.9 mi
- Red Cliff: 15.2 mi
- Bumpass Hell: 2.1 mi
- Devastated Area: 2.9 mi
- Sulphur Works: 3.1 mi
- Hot Rock: 3.3 mi
- Seismograph: 4.5 mi
- Mill Creek Falls: 3.3 mi
- Kings Creek Falls: 3.9 mi
- Bluff Falls: 5.4 mi
- Deadhorse Falls: 17.0 mi
- Deer Creek Falls: 19.8 mi
- Turquoise Pool: 2.1 mi
- Big Boiler: 2.1 mi
- Pyrite Pool: 2.2 mi
- Drakesbad Hot Springs: 6.2 mi
- Terminal Geyser: 8.2 mi
- Kings Creek Picnic Area: 2.6 mi
- Hat Creek Campground Picnic Area: 12.8 mi
- Old Station Day Use Area: 13.2 mi
- Elam Picnic Area: 16.9 mi
- Chester Park: 19.0 mi
- Dig It Meadow: 19.5 mi
- Meadow Park: 20.0 mi
- Swain Mountain Experimental Forest: 21.2 mi
- Shingletown Rest Area: 17.3 mi
- Bogard Rest Area: 21.7 mi
- Lake Almanor Rest Area: 22.1 mi
- Lassen Volcanic National Park: 4.9 mi
- Deer Creek Preserve: 22.6 mi
- Mount Harkness Lookout: 11.4 mi
- Fort Maxwell: 12.7 mi
- Chester-Lake Almanor Museum: 19.1 mi
- Totem Pole: 20.0 mi
- Catfish Beach: 21.2 mi
Other summits around it
The highest named summits within 12.9 miles of Lassen Peak. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brokeoff Mountain | SW 224° | 2,814 m | 4.1 mi |
| Eagle Peak | SW 225° | 2,811 m | 1.1 mi |
| Mount Diller | SW 232° | 2,750 m | 2.7 mi |
| Ski Heil Peak | SW 221° | 2,721 m | 1.4 mi |
| Mount Helen | S 175° | 2,694 m | 1.2 mi |
| Pilot Pinnacle | SW 227° | 2,672 m | 2.0 mi |
| Bumpass Mountain | S 170° | 2,664 m | 1.9 mi |
| Reading Peak | ESE 120° | 2,647 m | 2.5 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:10 | 18:42 | 19:18 |
| June solstice | 05:37 | 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, 5 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.
OpenStreetMapWikipediaWikidata- USGS Geographic Names Information System feature 262324 — Lassen Peak, Shasta County, California.
OpenStreetMap element node/320129927
Day trips start here
- Lassen Volcanic National Park · 5 mi
- Shingletown · 19 mi
Take the scenic way to Lassen Peak.
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