Summit Lake

Summit Lake is a high-country lake beside the Lassen Volcanic National Park Highway, near the middle of the 30-mile crossing. The north-shore day-use area has parking and picnic tables, and swimming is generally better from this side than the grassier south shore. It's a good place for a picnic, a dip or a relaxed lakeside walk, rather than a major hike. The access is 12 miles south of Manzanita Lake and 17.5 miles north of the Southwest Entrance. At 6,695 feet, this is high country; the park highway needs substantial snow clearing each spring, so check whether the crossing is open before planning around it.

The lake's appeal is the combination of open water, meadow, conifers and a rounded volcanic peak. A short path follows the shore, making a pleasant leg-stretch between drives. The scenery changes as you move around the water, and visitors often stop here to swim or spread out for a picnic.

From the shoreline, keep some water in the foreground and frame the rounded peak above the trees. When the surface is still, it can reflect the wooded shore; a breeze breaks up that mirror, so take the reflection when conditions line up.

The nearby campground areas have a history of informal trails and widened campsites wearing into the understory. After hazard trees were removed in 2019, restoration work there included about 4,000 plants and 125 pounds of seed in 2020. That work belongs to the campground restoration areas, but it's a good reason to stay on the established paths around this lakeshore.