Advertisement: A winter snowshoe trip to the base of Mount Lassen. Enjoy the solitude of winter with some great snowy views along the way.
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| The view of Brokeoff Mountain from the ridge of Diamond Peak |
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| Sunrise and a sea of clouds from the park road |
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| The traverse along Emerald Sidehill |
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| View of Lassen from near Emerald Lake |
More photographs.
Difficulty: Depends on snow conditions; the longer after a storm, the more trail has been broken, and the easier the going. Can be a 5-6 mile hike depending on how many shortcuts you take, with 1500 feet of elevation gain.
Preparation: Snowshoes. This can be a day hike or an overnighter depending on fitness level, snow conditions, length of day (i.e. time of year) and how early you want to start. Note that it starts getting cold very fast as soon as the sun sets behind the mountain (which might be an hour and a half sooner than official sunset), so it’s best to have your camp built by then.
Route
The route is fairly straightforward: mostly follow the road. You can cut the switchbacks anytime you want as well, since it’s winter and there is no danger of damage to vegetation.
There is a “ranger cutoff” which, as depicted on maps, ascends the southern ridge of Diamond Peak, before continuing straight north toward the road. This route is either great because you can easily bag Diamond Peak or it is more work than necessary. If the latter, take an even shorter cutoff starting slightly after the Sulphur Works fumaroles (be careful to avoid hazardous ground where snow has been weakened or melted by the hot sulphur) and ending near the same southern “bend” in the road. Since you are in the trees the whole time, this can be a fun routefinding challenge.
Other than being shorter, one big reason to use the cutoff is that it avoids some avalanche terrain (see the map) along Diamond Sidehill. Avalanche terrain is unavoidable along Emerald Sidehill; take note of the rock and snow debris and hustle.
Summary: Our trip was right after a storm and we broke trail the whole way, seeing a whole lot of pristine snow and not a whole lot of people. Our original intent was to summit Lassen but we couldn’t make it in time. The detour to Diamond Peak was worth it for the views if you can afford the time. Usually this route is made in a Lassen summit attempt, but it’s well worth it as a standalone trip (and you wouldn't need to bother then with ice axe and crampons). We camped for one night for the experience. 4/5
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