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By the time I tried to make campsite reservations, Manzanita Lake's reservable
sites were all taken. I seriously thought about finally camping at Trinity
Alps Wilderness, where there were several sites still available. However, when
I found out the forecast was for 90+ degree weather there each day, I reconsidered.
I eventually made a reservation for 4 nights at Butte Lake campground in
Lassen, starting on Friday night. However, I ended up having too much work
to complete and we decided we'd just leave on Saturday morning instead.
Technically speaking, if you miss the first night, they'll only hold your
camp site until check-out time the next day, which is 12pm. So we were trying
to get an early start to make sure we arrived in time. I also had hopes of
just finding a first-come, first-served site at Manzanita Lake, though I wasn't
sure of my chances on a Saturday. So we got up early and managed to leave the
Bay Area around 7:40am.
Of course there wasn't any traffic, so we made good time on I-80, I-505, and I-5,
eventually going through Shingletown on our way to the Manzanita Lake entrance
at around noon (stopping once for gas). This was still an hour away from Butte
Lake, but I asked the
ranger at the entrance if there were sites available at Manzanita Lake and she
said there were plenty.
There were several sites in both the B and D loops, but D-loop is for tents
only, so that's what we decided on. I talked to the camp host and they simply
transferred our reservation from Butte Lake to Manzanita Lake. Technically,
I think Manzanita Lake is $2 more expensive, but we missed the first night
anyway, so they didn't charge us anything extra. I think this is a great tactic
I'll have to consider next time I'm car camping: If you can't make reservations
for the campground of your choice, reserve a less popular one in the same park,
and use that as a back-up. Of course this will only work in parks that do this,
and your preferred campground may be full, anyway.
I haven't actually stayed in Butte Lake campground before, and I hear it's
pretty, but some of the reasons I preferred to stay at Manzanita Lake were the
proximity of a store for supplies, the beauty of Manzanita Lake itself, and
the proximity to some of the day hikes we wanted to do. I might consider
car camping at Butte Lake on another trip, or perhaps doing a backpacking trip
starting there.
After setting up camp, we took a nap, then visited the nearby Loomis Museum
(visitor's center) before an early dinner. There, we noted that the Lassen
Peak trail was closed for maintenance (it would only be open a handful of days
during 2013), but we weren't planning to do it this trip, anyway. After dinner
we hiked around
Manzanita Lake, just as we had done a few years earlier --
but this time in the opposite direction.
We briefly returned to camp, then made our way to the amphitheater for a 9pm
ranger program. After witnessing a very energetic, over-the-top performance
by a park ranger explaining the cycle of tree life in the forest, we ran into
our tent to escape the cold night air.
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