Lassen Wilderness Gear Checklist
Lassen Volcanic has no assigned backcountry campsites and no quota, so your gear list is built around the park's rules rather than a fixed route. The park requires an approved bear container from April 16 to November 30 and bans fires and hanging food. Hikers who have camped here describe cold nights at lake level, patchy mosquitoes, exposed cinder trail and water that always needs treating.
What shapes your gear on Lassen Volcanic
- Permit
- Overnight camping outside park campgrounds needs a wilderness permit from Recreation.gov, one per trip, up to 90 days ahead. There is no quota. The fee is $6 per permit plus $5 per person aged 16 or older.
From National Park Service: Backcountry Camping and National Park Service: Backcountry Camping Regulations
- Where you may camp
- There are no designated sites. You cannot camp within 100 feet of water, within half a mile of a park road or developed area, or within a quarter mile of named spots such as Cliff Lake, Echo Lake and Crags Lake.
From National Park Service: Backcountry Camping Regulations and Backpackers Review
- Elevation
- Butte Lake sits near 6,000 feet, and one four-day loop through the park topped out at 8,400 feet with about 7,000 feet of total up and down.
From Gregable and Backpackers Review
- Busiest trailhead
- The park names Summit Lake as the most popular and congested backpacking trailhead and suggests starting at another one. Warner Valley, Butte Lake and Juniper Lake are the other main starts.
- Fire damage
- The 2021 Dixie Fire burned much of the eastern side of the park. Backpacking is allowed there except where closed signs stand, and the park asks you to expect burned-area hazards.
From National Park Service: Backcountry Camping and National Park Service: Backcountry Camping Regulations
What the agency requires on Lassen Volcanic
An IGBC-listed bear-resistant container
Food, scented items and toiletries must go in a container on the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee certified list that the park accepts. Hanging food and every other method is prohibited. The rule applies April 16 to November 30, and rangers can ask to see your container.
From National Park Service: Backcountry Camping Regulations and National Park Service: Backcountry Camping
Your printed or saved wilderness permit
Keep a copy of the permit on you for the whole trip. The park also wants a copy attached to your pack and a parking slip on your dashboard.
From National Park Service: Backcountry Camping Regulations and National Park Service: Backcountry Camping
A small liquid or gas stove
Cook on a compact stove that burns liquid fuel or gas. The park bans campfires in the backcountry.
A trowel and a bag for toilet paper
Dig catholes 6 to 8 inches deep and at least 100 feet from water, camp and trail. Toilet paper and hygiene products must be packed out, not buried or burned.
What hikers carry on Lassen Volcanic
A bear canister
One hiker on a four-day loop packed a large canister because the park has active black bears. The park says rangers sometimes find bears with improperly stored food around Butte Lake.
From Backpackers Review and National Park Service: Backcountry Camping
Bug repellent, and clothing treated against bugs
Mosquitoes can be thick in some spots. One hiker picks a repellent that will not damage synthetic fabric and treats clothes and tent beforehand. A guidebook author gives the same warning for the Snag Lake area. A June hiker met none and a July hiker met a few.
From Backpackers Review, Northern California Hiking Trails, Gregable and Backpacking Light forum
A warm layer for camp
Lake camps get cold. A June trip to Snag Lake saw the temperature fall steadily after sunset and reach close to freezing overnight, with ice-cold water steaming at dawn. Another hiker packed a light down jacket and wool base layers for evenings.
A real tent with a rainfly
A storm parked over Horseshoe Lake for about three hours in a forecast that showed only a 10% chance. A roomy tent let the pair wait it out in comfort. A fall loop hiker also chose a strong tent with a fly.
A water filter or other treatment
Lakes and streams are the only sources. The park says Juniper Lake has no drinking water and tells you to treat water or carry your own. One guidebook author says to purify and keep a quart per person on hand, and a gravity filter is what one loop hiker used.
From National Park Service: Backcountry Camping, Northern California Hiking Trails and Backpackers Review
A paper topo map
Trails are well marked, but rangers do not plan routes for you and camping closures are scattered around lakes. One hiker carried a National Geographic map, and the guidebook author lists USGS quads and the park brochure for his Snag Lake route.
From Backpackers Review, Northern California Hiking Trails and National Park Service: Backcountry Camping
Sun protection for the Cinder Cone side
Most of the first day from Butte Lake to Snag Lake is exposed, and the cinder track is loose and sandy. The hiker who did it says the western shore of Snag Lake has the shade for camp.
From Gregable, National Park Service: Backcountry Camping and Backpackers Review
Trekking poles
One loop hiker with a 65-liter pack and 7,000 feet of total climbing carried poles, and the Cinder Cone climb is about 800 feet of steep loose scree.
From Backpackers Review and Gregable
Camp sandals
Camps sit beside lakes. A mid-July hiker swam in Snag Lake at the end of day one, and a June camper found the same lake icy at dawn. One loop hiker packed light sandals to change into.
From Gregable, Backpacking Light forum and Backpackers Review
10 people can go on one permit. Split this list between them so nobody carries two stoves.
Plan a trip hereWhat hikers regret or leave behind on Lassen Volcanic
Bear spray
It counts as a weapon here and is not permitted in the park. A hiker who built a gear list for the park tells readers to leave it at home.
From National Park Service: Backcountry Camping Regulations and Backpackers Review
A rope for hanging food
Hanging is prohibited in the park, so a rope does not replace the container.
A paper permit from an old guidebook
A 2019 guidebook post says to pick up the permit at the park or by email. The park now issues permits only through Recreation.gov, so do not rely on a ranger station.
From Northern California Hiking Trails and National Park Service: Backcountry Camping
A campfire permit and firewood
The same guidebook post mentions a California campfire permit for backpackers. The park says fires are not allowed in the backcountry, so carry a stove and leave the permit idea behind.
From Northern California Hiking Trails and National Park Service: Backcountry Camping Regulations
Fishing gear left on the garage shelf
One hiker found at Horseshoe Lake that the pack felt light because the rod had never been packed, and spent the trip watching birds instead. Check your list the night before.
Gear questions for Lassen Volcanic
Do I need a bear canister for Lassen Volcanic?
Yes, from April 16 to November 30. The container must be on the IGBC certified list and accepted by the park, and hanging food is not allowed. The park keeps a limited number of rentals at its bookstores, so call before you count on one.
From National Park Service: Backcountry Camping Regulations and National Park Service: Backcountry Camping
Can I have a campfire on a Lassen Volcanic backpacking trip?
No. Fires are not allowed in the backcountry, and only small liquid or gas stoves are permitted.
Where do I get water on a Lassen Volcanic backpacking trip?
From lakes and streams, and you should treat it. Juniper Lake has no drinking water, and one guidebook author says water is sporadic at the lakes on his Snag Lake route.
From National Park Service: Backcountry Camping and Northern California Hiking Trails
Are mosquitoes bad on a Lassen Volcanic backpacking trip?
It varies by year and by spot. A ranger warned one June hiker, who then saw none, while a July hiker met a few at Snag Lake. Carry repellent anyway.
From Backpacking Light forum, Gregable and Backpackers Review
Is bear spray allowed at Lassen Volcanic?
No. The park lists bear spray as a weapon and does not permit it.
Sources
- Backcountry Camping Regulations · National Park Service · Agency
- Backcountry Camping · National Park Service · Agency
- Bumpass Hell to the Cinder Cone, Lassen Volcanic National Park (38 miles) · Backpackers Review · Trip report
- Epic but easy backpacking: Lassen Cinder Cone and Snag Lake · Gregable, Greg Grothaus · Blog
- Lassen back country and front · Backpacking Light forum, Paul Wagner · Forum thread
- Backpacking Snag Lake, Widow Lake, and Jakey Lake in Lassen Volcanic National Park · Northern California Hiking Trails, John Soares · Blog