When we were in Lassen 2 weeks ago* the snow depth at Mt. Lassen’s summit, which we in no way approached, was over 12 feet. A couple of areas of the park we’d hoped to visit were also closed due to the snow not having melted enough yet (oh, Bumpass Hell, you are elusive!!), but this meant that other, totally accessible areas had snowy banks right there. It was not fluffy, and there was to be no throwing at people (“no, no, noooo, okay, cut that out!”) but it was snow!
It never rains here in the summer. Except when it randomly does, once some years, never some, and other years we get a couple of weeks of June Gloom (which can go to July because, hey, because). The past 3 days have been rainy/foggy here, so yesterday Bunny, Cole, and I explored a little off beach while Carter had Little Guards (he was so warm in his wetsuit his skin warmed my chilly hands when I helped him change afterwards, and he’d been boogie boarding a couple of times that afternoon). We took the trolley downtown and did a little window shopping.
The campground where we stayed near Lassen had a lot of fun things to offer. The playground was suited better to smaller children, but there was also tetherball, basketball, corn hole, horseshoes (horrifying with a 5 yr old—at least my 5 yr old), volleyball, and a newly built 16’ tall tree swing in the woods.
My family high-tailed it to that thing on the first afternoon, and had to return again before we returned home. Cole was intimidated by the height and was happy to watch.
Last weekend my family went to Lassen Volcanic National Park, and I am only now just beginning to sort through the photos.
Chaparral and grasslands. Live oaks. It is an aesthetic that can take a bit for the eye to adjust to if one grows up seeing green-green-green. Yet, it’s stunning, and vibrant. I really love it.
The weather is warming, the final school bell’s rung, and it feels like summer. Our school has a half-day for last day, and the kids asked to host a little pool party to celebrate and enjoy the long afternoon shifting into summertime habits. This means late nights and calm mornings, lazy afternoons on the beach, wild boardwalk rides, countless hours swimming, cook outs with friends, leafy garden salads, homemade iced tea with lime and ice cold popsicles for the kids. To ensure I was able to monitor the action, we kept it manageable, with only a few 5-7 year olds and a few more 10-11 year olds, and it was amazing to see kids of such a wide age range playing so happily. Later that day some of us grown ups got in the spa and enjoyed BBQ ribs under the lights. Unfortunately I missed the photo of the magnum champagne geyser… too busy grabbing towels. Happy Summer!
