Sight · Lassen Volcanic National Park
A creekside steam vent at the end of a long hike.
Overview
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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
Warner Valley and Drakesbad“You're coming up on the Warner Valley trailhead, a starting point for meadow walks and hydrothermal hikes.”
Plays as you drive up to Terminal Geyser 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
Terminal Geyser is a large fumarole in Warner Valley, where steam rises from the middle of a creek. The name is misleading: this is a steam vent, not a geyser that erupts water at intervals. It’s a hike to one unusual thermal feature, so I’d save it for a day when a long walk sounds good.
The route from Warner Valley Trailhead is 5.8 miles round trip, usually 2½ to 3 hours, with about 610 feet of elevation change and a high point at 6,250 feet. It climbs steadily over a ridge, then drops to the creek and follows an old road upstream. Leave time for the climb back out.
The trail passes lush meadows near Drakesbad, follows Hot Springs Creek, then winds through fir, incense cedar, ponderosa pine, and lodgepole pine. Hillside wildflowers usually peak in July. At the vent, keep some of the rocky creekside setting around the plume in your photo; it shows where the steam is coming from.
Rain and snowmelt seep underground, where hot rock beneath Lassen Peak heats the water. Steam escapes through fractures in the ground, one sign that the volcano is still active. Hot Springs Creek also receives cold springs, but water near thermal features can be acidic. Stay on established paths and don’t enter or touch the water; a thin crust can hide boiling pools.
Warner Valley Trailhead is about 16 miles northwest of Chester. The route includes steep, rutted dirt and gravel roads, which the park does not recommend for trailers or RVs. There’s parking at the trailhead.
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
ChallengingPacific Crest Trail through Lassen Volcanic19.1 mi · 10 hr · 0.9 mi awayA true PCT crossing strings together remote lakes and forest.ModerateLittle Willow Lake to Terminal Geyser Trail3.2 mi · 2.3 hr · 1 mi awayA lakeside fen leads to a steam vent in the woods.
EasyBoiling Springs Lake Trail3 mi · 2 hr · 1.8 mi awayAn easy three-mile walk to steaming water and lakeside mudpots.
ModerateDrake Lake Trail5 mi · 3.5 hr · 1.8 mi awaySteep switchbacks climb from a meadow to a quiet forest lake.
ModerateTerminal Geyser Trail5.8 mi · 2.8 hr · 1.8 mi awayA forest climb ends at a steam plume in Willow Creek’s canyon.
ChallengingKings Creek Loop from Warner Valley10.5 mi · 8 hr · 1.8 mi awayA hard loop over Flatiron Ridge, Kings Creek Falls and Bench Lake.
EasyDream Lake Basin Trail1.5 mi · 45 min · 1.8 mi awayA former lake basin threaded by springs and meadow plants.
ModerateDevils Kitchen Trail4.2 mi · 2.5 hr · 1.9 mi awayA meadow walk to a bubbling, steam-filled volcanic basin.
Sight · 1.4 mi awayBoiling Springs LakeA warm, milky lake ringed by steam and bubbling mudpots.
Picnic area · 1.7 mi awayWarner Valley Day Use AreaA trailhead picnic stop for Lassen's hydrothermal corner.
Campground · 1.8 mi awayWarner Valley CampgroundA remote, wooded base for Warner Valley's trail network.
Lodging · 2.1 mi awayDrakesbad Guest RanchA remote Warner Valley base for meals, lodging, and nearby hikesSight · 3.3 mi awayDevils KitchenBubbling pools and steam after a longer Warner Valley hike.
Sight · 4.2 mi awayHorseshoe LakeA trout lake people have fished since 1936
Sight · 4.3 mi awayKings Creek FallsThe creekside stone steps are half the payoff.
Campground · 4.7 mi awayJuniper Lake CampgroundCamp beside the lake, after six rough dirt-road miles.Parkwolf’s Lassen Volcanic ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
