Historic marker · Lassen Volcanic National Park
A quick stop ties the park road to an 1850s wagon route.
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The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Lassen Volcanic Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Lassen Volcanic National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Lassen Volcanic audio tourRecorded for this place
Sunflower Flat and the Nobles Emigrant Trail“Sunflower Flat is coming up, a quick plaque stop marking the Nobles Emigrant Trail. William Nobles opened this wagon route into California in eighteen fifty-two, during the Gold Rush.”
Plays as you drive up to Sunflower Flat in the Parkwolf Lassen Volcanic Tour Guide.
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“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Sunflower Flat is a roadside plaque stop on the Lassen Volcanic National Park Highway, marking the Nobles Emigrant Trail. I’d pull in for a quick, specific piece of park history; it’s not a destination that needs a long visit.
Across the highway, a cut through the forest marks another section of the old route. The opening can be easy to miss, so check a trail map before crossing instead of expecting an obvious trail entrance.
William H. Nobles created this roughly 300-mile wagon route in 1852, during the Gold Rush. It was widely considered the easiest route into California, and pioneers used it until the Central Pacific Railroad was completed in 1869. About 24 miles follow the park’s northern edge, with roughly 19 miles established as hiking trail; the route was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.
Wildlife
103 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
44 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
348 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
17 sightingsSandhill CraneMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
47 sightingsGreat Blue HeronMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
12 sightingsGreat EgretMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Lassen Volcanic. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateCrags Lake Trail4 mi · 2.5 hr · 1.9 mi awayRocky Chaos Jumbles give way to a high view of Crags Lake.
EasyLily Pond Interpretive Trail0.8 mi · 1 hr · 2 mi awayAn easy, interpretive loop through pond, meadow and volcanic forest.
EasyReflection Lake Loop0.6 mi · 30 min · 2 mi awayAn easy loop for Lassen Peak reflected in the lake.
EasyManzanita Lake Loop1.8 mi · 1 hr · 2.3 mi awayLassen Peak and Chaos Crags can double in still lake water.
ModerateManzanita Creek Trail7 mi · 4 hr · 2.5 mi awayA forest creek climb to a marshy meadow beneath Loomis Peak.
EasyDevastated Area Interpretive Trail0.3 mi · 20 min · 4.6 mi awayA quick accessible loop among the rocks left by Lassen's 1915 eruption.
ChallengingHat Creek Headwaters Trail6.1 mi · 5 hr · 4.9 mi awayA shuttle hike from creekside falls to meadow and lake country.ModerateHat Lake to Paradise Meadows Trail2.8 mi · 2 hr · 4.9 mi awayA shaded creek climb to a meadow beneath Lassen’s rocky cliffs.
Campground · 0.9 mi awayVolcano Adventure CampCabins and ranger-led learning, reserved for youth groups.
Campground · 1 mi awayLost Creek Group CampgroundEight reservable group sites under the ponderosa pines.
Scenic pullout · 1.1 mi awayChaos Crags ViewpointQuick roadside stop: rock avalanches left a field of frozen waves.
Sight · 2.1 mi awayLoomis MuseumA compact museum built around photos of Lassen Peak’s 1914 eruption.
Sight · 2.1 mi awayReflection LakeLassen Peak and Chaos Crags double in a calm lake.
Store · 2.3 mi awayManzanita Lake Camper StoreFood, camper basics, showers and rentals at the Manzanita Lake campground.
Entrance station · 2.3 mi awayManzanita Lake Entrance StationPasses, maps and park information at Lassen's northwest entrance.
Sight · 2.3 mi awayManzanita LakeA shore loop with Lassen Peak reflected in the water.Parkwolf’s Lassen Volcanic ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
