Mill Creek Falls (Lassen Volcanic National Park, California)

For the final hike of my weekend camping trip to Lassen, I wanted to check out two sites - Cold Boiling Lake and Mill Creek Falls, both of which are along the same trail. Arriving at the Kings Creek Picnic Area, we decide to take an early lunch break before hitting the trail. Knowing that we will be putting in 6+ miles, it seemed like a good plan. As luck would have it, I had one beer left from last night and it went down very smoothly. 

Shortly after finishing a quick lunch, we hit the trail, which rises pretty sharply out of the parking lot. Only about a half of a mile in, we take a quick turn to Cold Boiling Lake, which is just off of the main trail. Not knowing exactly what to expect, I find a sign on the shoreline explains that the bubbles in rising from the lake waters come from cold gas rising from under the surface. It's not dangerous as many of the other geothermal areas tend to be, but it's also a bit of a let down. I was honestly expecting a something a bit more exciting, but that's okay, we still have another stop on this trail.

Pushing further on, we encounter a number of snow piles in the forest, protected from the sun's rays by the shadow of the tall pines all around us. It's mostly melted though and poses no real obstruction to the trail. As the trail opens up into a large meadow, my friend Bill and I are in awe of a terrific scene. Crumbaugh Lake to our left, and a wild-flower carpeted, steep hillside to our right. It's a really pretty picture, but it's not our destination and so, we move on.

The trail is well cut, but the melting snow makes for a few muddy patches here and there - nothing substantial though. After passing through more forest and past another wide meadow, we begin our descent into the canyon that ends at the confluence of Bumpass Creek and Mills Creek. The trail is very steep and while it is well maintained, we both still slip a couple of times. We both comment on how much 'fun' the climb out of this canyon is going to be on the way back.

Encountering a young couple resting on the side of the trail, I ask how much further to the falls. The respond by telling us it is just ahead. And after a few more switchback, they are proven correct. A couple of sturdy wooden bridges offer safe passage over the meeting creeks, and a few steps climbing down the rocks on the far side of the bridge leads to a spot directly across from the falls.

While I can't get an great angle to see the entire falls, the fast-flowing water plunges over a worn rock into the valley far below, which opens up into a great view of the park. We take a 5-minute break to get some water and a snack, before heading back the way we came.

The climb out proves to be as challenging as we thought it would be and wanting to get a good workout today, I actually run up a short distance of the hike. We eventually ascend to the top and make our way back to the trail head. While Cold Boiling Lake was a bit disappointing, the waterfall proved to be well worth the trip. Total distance was just at 6.5 miles round trip. I fire up the jeep, start a shuffle of a heavy metal play list, and we are Reno-bound.