On A Re-discovery Hike: Around the Butte Lake-Snag Lake Loop, Part 2

Procpect Peak and Cinder Cone, viewed from the southeast shore of Snag Lake

 

Date: July 27, 2023
Place: Lassen Volcanic National Park, Old Station, California

 

A link to part 1 of this hike

 

Grass Creek, where I finally stopped for my long desired lunch break, was approximately a bit after the half way point of my planned hike. I took my time eating and enjoying the sound of the running water, and the beautiful flowers that bloomed on the creek banks. 

Grass Creek

My favorite of all those wildflowers by the creek was the leopard lily. There were a few of these plants there, all at the peak of their bloom. They were absolutely gorgeous. 

Leopard Lily, Lilium pardalinum

More monkeyflowers were blooming by the creek as well. These were the familiar yellow monkeyflowers that are very common by water sources all over California. 

Seep Monkeyflower, Erythranthe gutatta

I could have stayed there longer but it was already past mid day and it was soon time to go on. I found it hard to get up after the long break because my legs got numb. 

Grass Creek

It was a few steps before the numbness wore off. It was okay though, because there was no way I'd go fast past all the wildflowers that I was seeing along that art of the trail.

Hedgenettle, Stachys sp.

One interesting thing was that the wildflowers  on the east side of the creek were of different species than those I saw blooming on the west side. Among them were many daisies of a species I wasn't quite able to identify.

Eaton's (?) Aster, Symphyotrichum bracteolatum

I found there one other species of monkeyflower, bringing the count to 5 different species of them. For a long time all monkeyflower species were grouped in the genus Mimulus but a few years ago this genus was split and the monkeyflower species I found on this hike are actually of two genera - Erythranthe and Diplacus. I don't know the basis on which this split was done.

Brewer's Monkeyflower, Erythranthe breweri

I also found a few columbine plants blooming east of the creek. These are pretty common, but they are very lovely and I always enjoy seeing them on my hikes.

Crimson Columbine, Aquilegia formosa

There was much greenery for quite a distance past the creek crossing, indicating of a great deal of surface moisture. This was probably also why I was seeing so many species that were different from what I saw in the drier west side of Grass Creek.

Snag Lake-Butte Lake Trail

A few butterflies fluttered around the wildflower patch, but what really caught my attention was the low hum of a sphynx moth. These marvelous creatures fly and sound just like hummingbirds, and are no less beautiful. 

Sphynx Moth enjoying Slender Penstemon

I progressed very slowly on the first trail stretch after crossing Grass Creek. There were new wildflower species almost every step of the way. Naturally, I had to stop by each and everyone of them. 

Selfheal, Prunella vulgaris

Long stalks of checkebloom with colors ranging from deep pink to creamy white protruded over the c=greenery. While most of the plants there reached my thigh, the checkerbloom flowers were nearly the height of my eyes. 

Oregon Checker Mallow, Sidalcea oregana

The soil became muddy and soon I was wading in a mix of flattened vegetation and mud. The wet soil supported more variety of wildflowers, including the lovely monkshood, a relative of the larkspur. 

Monkshood, Aconitum columbianum

I kept my eyes peeled for bog orchids which like growing in damp areas. Sure enough - I found it right there, at the place where I had to tread over some grass so to not sink in the mud.

Sierra Bog Orchid, Platanthera dilatata

After the muddy pond the trail became drier and the greenery less intense. On the edge of the ditch where the water collected bloomed some California cornlilies. I love these magnificent plants.

California Cornlily, Veratrum californicum

On the ground I saw a large patch of liverwort moss. These I nearly always see on tree trunks in lush areas. The trees here however, were all burnt and the ground there was moist enough still, so I guess that shouldn't have been a surprise. Still, not something I see everyday. 

Liverwort

The trail curved north and continued away from Grass Creek and into the area that was most damaged by 2021's Dixie Fire. The devastation of what was the largest single fire in California's history was huge. I was hiking at its boundary area and was somber. All the trees around me were dead, standing charred. Not a single tree escaped the blaze where I was now walking. 

Snag Lake-Butte Lake Trail

At last the trail brought me near the east shore of Snag Lake. The water was deep blue, visible between the charred trees like behind jail bars. I no longer needed a lunch break so I continued along the trail.

Snag Lake

The charred, dead trees were a sad sight. The forest floor however, was a whole different thing. Having been exposed to direct sunlight, there were carpets and carpets of wildflowers blooming all over the place.

Snag Lake-Butte Lake Trail

 

Monardella and Penstemon dominated the bloom fields here on the east shore area too, but there were lovely patches of other wildflowers, such as the bright red scarlet gilia.

Scarlet Gilia, Ipomopsis aggregata

I started seeing more of the fireweed flowers. This one thrives in disturbed areas. and what's more disturbed than a burned forest? Perhaps that's how it got the name fireweed.

Fireweed, Chamerion angustifolium

When the trail got close enough to the waterfront I stepped off to the shore, where I had a clear, unobstructed view of Prospect Peak and Cinder Cone to the north.

I had to zoom in at maximum to get a good view of Cinder Cone, which in the wide view photo looked no more than a little bump on the side of the much taller Prospect Peak.

Cinder Cone, viewed from the southeast shore of Snag Lake

I returned my gaze to the lake shore. Here too were watermarks like those I saw on the rocks and trees when I first reached Snag Lake (photos in Part 1 post), evidence of higher water levels. Here too it was strangely beautiful. I've never seen the likes of these near other lakes.

Water Marks

More lupine was blooming along that part of the trail, of a different species from the tidy lupine I saw earlier on my hike. 

Silvery Lupine, Lupinus argentus

More greenery indicated I was coming up on another wet area. White willowherb flowers dotted the trail side, like tiny stars shining on the black volcanic soil. 

Willowherb, Epilobium sp.

The greenery below the burnt trees became denser and brighter, and soon I was wading through another flooded and muddy section of the trail. 

Snag Lake-Butte Lake Trail 

As one might expect, I found more wildflowers blooming in and around that wet area. The beautiful display of thriving vegetation made it easier to ignore the standing tree cemetery I was walking through. 

Fleabane, Erigeron sp. 

I even saw different forms of wildflowers I've seen earlier, like this checkerbloom that was nearly white in appearance. 

Oregon Checker Mallow, Sidalcea oregana

Intense growth marked wherever a creek flowed, even if it wasn't flowing anymore. The dominant color along these creek routes was yellow, mostly contributed by monkeyflowers. 

Large Mountain Monkeyflower, Erythranthe tillingii 

Even this late into my hike I was seeing new wildflower species. This cute yerba santa formed little purple rugs that beautifully matched the yellow monkeyflowers. 

Matted Yerba Santa, Eriodictyon lobbii

After an hour or so of a slow walk in a forest without any shade I felt my eyelids getting heavy and I decided it was time to take a break. I stepped ff the trail and found myself a nice, shaded spot near the water, and sat down. 

Snag Lake, view northwest

I snacked and hydrated. I even tried taking a nap but didn't fall asleep. It was nice t simply sit and relax, watching the sunlight play the water, riding the ripples. On my hike here with Pappa Quail 20 years ago I took the chance to go in the lake for a refresher dip. Pappa Quail remembers that a doe went in the water not too far from me. For some reason, I don't remember it. This time I stayed out of the water, promising myself a dip in Butte Lake if I'd complete the hike early enough. 

Snag Lake, view southwest

After half an hour I felt it was time to get going again. I still had some good distance to walk and I wanted to get back to the campground with enough daylight for a possible dip in the lake. I came upon a parch of burnt aspen trees. The aspens seemed to be bouncing back big time after the fire. I later found out that these aspens are likely to all be clones of one another, connected below ground as a single super organism. 

Snag Lake-Butte Lake Trail

I came across another small brook that was flowing between the aspens and the monkeyflowers. Knowing that soon the trail would leave Snag Lake I stopped and refilled my bottles with the fresh running water. Bringing my filter was a very good choice - without it I'd have had to carry a much heavier load or be in a danger of dehydration. 

The aspens behind me, I was now walked through burnt pine trees. The tees were dead all right, but not completely burnt. Many of them still had their branches and dead foliage. Behind them I glimpsed some green tree tops - there were some survivors there. A yellow movement grabbed my attention - a western tanager flew into the dead pines and stationed himself on one of the distant branches. At my maximal zoom I could barely see it. The photo needs to be enlarged to spot the bird. 

Find Waldo the Tanager

Leaving Snag Lake behind, without knowing if I'd ever be close to it again, I started ascending u a mild slope into the forest, going north back to Butte Lake. The forest here had mostly survived the fire. It was nice to see green pines again and to enjoy the shaded parts of the trail. 

Snag Lake-Butte Lake Trail

I soon passed another small brook, the last water I'd see before getting to Butte Lake. I had plenty of water on me though, so I didn't stop again to refill. 

Birds too enjoyed the surviving, live forest They tweeted all around me, and I even managed to capture too of them chickadees, a parent and juvenile likely. 

Chestnut-backed Chickadee

Naturally, the mostly shaded living forest floor had less undergrowth and subsequently, less wildflowers. The most common undergrowth plant blooming there though, was the mule's ears, named so for the shape of its leaves. 

Woolly Mule-s Ears, Wyethia mollis

I caught a glimpse of an irregularity on one of the mule's ears leaves. It was a little, green stink bug. I didn't sniff it to verify the name. 

Nezara viridula

After ascending some, the trail leveled. It leveled on the macro scale but more locally it was deeply rutted in places, heavily eroded by water. I had to be really careful not to trip on any of the exposed tree roots. In places I even left the trail to bypass difficult sections. 

Snag Lake - Butte Lake Trail

One of the things I remember vividly from my hike here twenty years ago was all the fallen logs that blocked the trail. We were warned at the time by a park ranger that a recent storm dropped a lot of trees and the the trails weren't cleared yet. We chanced it anyway, and indeed we had to go around or hop over many, many fallen logs. I kept expecting to have to bypass fallen trees but I didn't have to at all - the trail was all clear of fallen trees. 

Snag Lake - Butte Lake Trail

The trail went on and on. The day was hot and I frequently drew small sips from my bottle. I knew that I would be coming up on Butte Lake soon but I didn't want to get there completely dry. 

Tidy Lupine, Lupinus lepidus

The trail was indeed clear of the fallen trees, but the entire forest was full of them. Even when downed, the trees support the life of many other organisms. I met one sitting atop one of these logs.  

Lodgepole Chipmunk

My GPS indicated that I passed the length written on my map where I was supposed to be at Butte Lake already. There was no lake in sight and I wondered if my GPS was off, or was the map wrong. I hoped that the discrepancy would be small because I was getting tired.  

Once again I saw charred trees. It seemed that this part of the trail was right at the edge of the fire - one minute I was walking through a healthy, green forest and in the next I passed through a charred stand of dead trees, victims of the recent Dixie Fire. I kept my eyes down looking at the thriving undergrowth, noting the lovely wildflowers and butterflies.  

Even here, this late into the hike, I was still encountering new wildflower species. New for the hike this day, not lifers. 

Grand Collomia, Collomia grandiflora

Another butterfly landed on a lupine shrub near me. I quickly grabbed the photo opportunity before the it took off again.

At last! I saw Butte Lake more than a mile after my GPS indicated that I should be there. At the time I thought that the map was at fault, but since my navigator had faltered on some hikes later I figured it might have been it. Either way, that stretch of trail between Snag Lake and Butte Lake sure felt longer than the distance marked on the map. 

Butte Lake

The trail met Butte Lake on its southeast side. I still had to hike along it's mile and a half eastern shore, then curve around the north shore for almost another mile to get to the campground. The sight of the lake cheered me up thought, infusing me with renewed energy. I picked up my pace and marched along the trail. 

Butte Lake

I was startled by a flock of common mergansers that jumped all of a sudden from the shore into the water and swam away quickly. I must have spooked them with my quick approach. These mergansers were the only waterfowl I saw on that hike, spanning to large lakes. 

Common Mergansers

The trail was very close to the lake. On the east the hill sloped steeply and was covered with trees. On that narrow strip between the forest and the water grew sun-loving plants, many of which were blooming too. 

Above me glided an osprey. I saw ospreys several times in the Butte Lake area, and it was nice seeing it again. It flew away quickly though, before I could get a god photo. 

The baby junco that I saw further down the trail was a little more cooperative, and didn't skedaddle like the adult juncos that were nearby.  

Dark-eyed Junco, Juvenile

Butte Lake is long. I was walking and walking and the north shore seemed to not get any closer. It did, of course. I was simply getting a tad impatient. 

Butte Lake 

As impatient as I was I still paused to look at the wildflowers along the trail, like the beautiful spiraea shrubs that bloomed near the water. 

Douglas Spiraea, Spiraea douglasii 

Far ahead I saw a small peninsula jutting out into the lake. I zoomed in on the peninsula: a few small pine tree grew there, alongside a single dead tall pine. It looked like it might be a nice place to stop for a break. 

I haven't seen to many wildlife on this long hike. A few chipmunks and squirrels, a few butterflies and other insects, some birds. Then I saw this lizard, a pretty representative of the reptiles order.  

Western fence Lizard

Wildlflowers were plenty though. Both in numbers and in diversity. 

The forest receded up the slope, exposing a very rocky hillside that supported smaller trees and many shrubs. The trail meandered between large volcanic rocks, none of them suitable for sitting. 

Butte Lake Trail

As I was getting closer to the north shore where the campground was I expected to see other hikers any minute. I didn't see any, though. Later I found out why. For now, I enjoyed my solitude. 

Naked Buckwheat, Eriogonum nudum

I didn't see the top of the mountain to my right but the large scree rocks it created rolled all the way down to the lake. The rocks were largely exposed, but a few bushes grew between them here and there. 

Eventually I got near that small peninsula that I saw earlier. I was disappointed to see that it was unsuitable for a rest stop. I could have used another rest stop. I was getting pretty tired again. The sun howerver, was already getting low, so I pushed on. 

Twenty years ago when Pappa Quail and I did this hike we forgot to bring a bug repellant. It was the height of mosquito season then and throughout that long hike we were bitten by mosquitos, but the situation was manageable until we got to Butte Lake's east shore. Butte Lake then was swarming with blood thirsty mosquitos. What I remember from that part of the hike is me and Pappa Quail literally running that entire mile and a half length of Butte Lake, hopping over fallen logs (which weren't cleared then yet), swatting wildly with our hands in futile attempts to reduce the blood drain. When we got to Butte Creek we crossed it quickly and climbed the trail on the hill and own the other side to get to the campground as quickly as possible. 

This time I came prepared, carrying plenty bug repellant. This time however, there was no need for it. I didn't encounter a single mosquito on this hike. Oh well. I did plan to cross the creek at that place just like last time. When I reached Butte Creek though, I found that the bridge was gone and that the creek was running too high and fast for safe fording, especially as tired as I was. Across the creek was a wilderness campground with a few tents and people wearing sweatshirts and coats. They waved at me and I waved back, and wondered what should I do next.  

Butte Creek

There was an alternative trail that split from that place to a second creek crossing downstream, looping back to Butte Lake Campground through Bathtub Lake. This trail would add at least a mile and a half more to my already long hike, but I decided to take it, hoping that the other creek crossing would be more doable. 

Butte Creek

Almost immediately the trail led me uphill. I walked slowly now not because of wildflowers, or because of the views (which were gorgeous) but because I was tired and my legs were aching. There was nothing to do about it now but keep on walking. I had no time left for any breaks. 

After what seemed to be an endless stretch of trail, which in fact was less than a mile, I went down to the creek. It was running high and fast here to but to my relief I saw a plank bridge laid across the stream. 

In earlier days I'd prbably run across with no worries. Nowadays I have to be more careful, balancing on the planks, which were moving a bit under my weight. 

Creek Crossing

There was more uphill after the creek crossing. The train was very thin, clearly not in heavy use. I passed near a scree hill which looked like a funny pyramid. 

Coming from the side nw, the sunlight made the grass bloom glow. 

I decided that I could afford a minute and some energy to go check out Bathtub Lake. Pappa Quail and I went there on a separate walk at that visit 20 years ago and found it to be small and murky, and full of mosquitos. I found that it didnt change at all. 

Bathtub Lake

Bathtub Lake was still small and murky. the only difference was that the bugs I saw swarming over the lake were gnats, not mosquites. 

Gnats over Bathtub Lake 

 I resumed my walk back to Butte Lake Campground. On the way I passed above another lake, fr which I saw n name marked on the map. It was a beautiful reflection though.

Reflection

Eventually I was coming down to Butte Lake's north shore. It was a great hike, but I was extremely tired and I had to sit down on one of the benches at the nearest parking lot and breathe a little before going to the campground. It was too late for a dip in the lake, and once again preparing and eating dinner would extend into darkness. My GPS showed 14.6 hours when I turned off the recording. I nearly beat my length record of last year of 15 miles getting over Mount Whitney. Nearly. I felt just as exhausted though. 

 I planned to go up Prospect Peak on the following day. By the time I went into the sack I was sure I'd have to forgo that plan. I was so tired and sore that I didn't think I'd be up for it in the morning. As it turned out, I was wrong about myself.