Brokeoff Mountain

Hiked: 8/31/2025
Distance: 7.8 miles round trip on trail
Summit Elevation: 9238'
Elevation Gain: 2690'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 2.1
Round trip time: 4 hours 15 minutes
Recommended water: 80 oz.
Parking/Fees: $30 National Parks Fee or National Parks Pass (*)
Difficulty: Moderate

note: The trailhead for Brokeoff is inside the park, but outside the entrance gate. There are signs stating that you need to pay the entrance fee to hike, but it's unclear how it is enforced.

On our last day at Lassen, Leisa and I hiked the Bumpass Hell trail to smoldering geothermic pools. It was a nice three mile warm up, but somewhat disappointing for the effort. The first couple of photos were from Bumpass Hell. Then, we drove outside the entrance gate to a paved parking lot with room for about a dozen cars. The trail started across the road with tall grass encroaching on the footpath. Soon, the trail opened up and we crossed a swampy creek over logs. We were more than a mile into the hike before we were able to see Brokeoff above the trees. This was our only other planned destination for the day, so we kept it in low gear. The trail went directly at the cliff face before veering toward the base of the ridge. Views started to open up as we gained elevation and the forest thinned into tall cedars and varieties of ground cover. A long segment of trail cut an angle up the slope to the ridge, then made a sharp turn east for the final approach.

Brokeoff Mountain from the Bumpass Hell trail

We walked below the NW summit, about 40' lower than the true summit. As on Lassen, the upper part of the mountain was buffeted by strong and steady wind. We continued on to the main summit with beautiful 360 views and only had to share it with one other couple. The cliffs below the summit were crumbly and vertical. We had a great look at Lassen and could make out Shasta better than from Lassen, but the top was still lost in haze and it didn't show up in the photos. We didn't find any benchmarks or a register. For lunch, we dropped 50' off the summit to the shelter of a small pine tree that blocked the wind. Since we had a few bars of cell service on top, we wasted some time goofing off before starting down. The trail was busier on the way down, but not nearly as busy as Lassen. Brokeoff Mountain was the highest remnant of Mount Tehama, an extinct volcano that was higher than Lassen half a million years ago. It was well worth the effort and recommended when visiting Lassen Volcanic National Park.

Leisa and I on the summit

Looking over at the lower NW summit

Lassen Peak

Hiked: 8/30/2025
Distance: 5.3 miles round trip on trail and use trail
Summit Elevation: 10462'
Prominence: 5246'
Elevation Gain: 2100'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.6
Round trip time: 3 hours 30 minutes
Recommended water: 54 oz.
Parking/Fees: $30 National Parks Fee or National Parks Pass
Difficulty: Moderate

Leisa and I finally made it to Lassen Volcanic National Park. We made the trip in 2021, only to find the park closed due to the Dixie Fire. That fire burned 73,240 acres in the park and we couldn't see anything from the visitor center. We diverted to Reno for Rose Peak. In 2022, a harsh winter prevented snow plows from clearing the road to the trailhead. In 2024, the Park Fire closed the park again. 2025 turned out to be our year. No nearby fires and most of the snow had melted. Since we were visiting on a busy Labor Day weekend, we started at sunrise. The parking lot when we started had less than 10 cars.

We started at sunrise up the groomed, sandy trail, admiring the frequent switchback trail work. We had great views of Helen Lake and Lake Almanor in the distance. It's a relatively short hike, only 2.5 miles to the summit and we did it in one push. The only curve ball was a strong, steady 25mph wind that hit us with a half mile to go. It wasn't in the weather forecast, so I left my windbreaker behind. Leisa had a hoody, so at least she had some protection. We had to guard against our hats getting blown off the mountain. We reached a flat area short of the summit where there were several informative signs, then proceeded on a use trail toward the summit. We had to cross a permanent snow field that had a deep boot track worn into it. No special precautions required. Then, an easy scramble up to the high point. A benchmark was set in a boulder at the high point and someone left a hand bell for celebratory rings. As is the case with most popular peaks, there was no register. After photos, we dropped down into the crater where we found more snow and jagged deformed rocks. There were no signs of fumaroles or other dangers. The descent was uneventful, but we passed over 100 eager hikers on their way up. The parking lot was full when we got back. Climbing this P5K Ultra was a satisfying start to our visit in the park.

Boiling mud pot at the Sulfur Works

Lassen from Emerald Lake

Helen Lake below

Across the snow field

Benchmark with no name

The crater

Inside the crater

Lassen from the devastated area in the north

Lassen from Manzanita Lake