A few weeks ago, we rented a (teeny tiny) cabin with some friends in Hat Creek, California. It was a last minute trip with little preparation. The only plan in place was that Matt and James were going to fish, most of the time. Monica and I figured we would take a scenic drive early Saturday morning and ask a few locals for some hiking suggestions outside of the obvious Lassen National Park and Burney Falls area (Both great places to visit, but not if you have a dog with you.).
Despite several attempts to gather information, the friendly folks we talked to were unable to provide us with, well, anything other than a great recommendation for lunch. We were determined to to have an adventure that included a hike and a swim, and we were not going to linger over the fact that I forgot to grab any of my (3!) northern California hiking books. We drove down some dirt roads that looked promising, armed with maps that were not drawn to scale, and we had a positive attitude (no regrets!). So with that, we ended up piecing together a lovely couple of days (and the guys did well fishing too).
Despite the fact that I love having some sort of itinerary in place, we did just fine figuring it out as we went along. However, if we were to find ourselves in this area again, we now know that the Old Station Information Center is open on weekends. Also, the Pacific Crest Trail runs right through the Hat Creek Rim Overlook. We didn’t realize that until we literally stumbled upon the trail marker while we were trying to get a different view of Mt. Shasta.
And next time, we’re definitely getting a bigger cabin.
K Dickinson Photography 