Alerts & Conditions

Alerts

 

• Visiting in Fall
• Visiting in Winter
• Trail Conditions
• Visiting After the Dixie Fire
• Operating Hours & Seasons
• Status of Park Roads
• Weather Forecast

Current Conditions

The Conditions Summary section below includes current information about about seasonal conditions, closures, fire and air quality, and other current information. 

The park is accessible, some roads may be closed; many hiking trails were affected by the 2021 Dixie Fire. In addition, all hiking trails are covered with snow.

Reservations are not required or accepted to enter Lassen Volcanic. You may enter the park at any time, 24 hours a day. A 7-day or annual pass is required to enter; all may be purchased online.

Campgrounds are closed for the winter season.
 

 

Conditions Summary

View the Fall / Winter Visitor Guide (3.6 MB, PDF) and learn more about Visiting in Winter. .

Service/Activity	Current Conditions
Emergency Closures in Burned Areas Burned Area Safety	Some closures are in place for facilities, infrastructure (e.g. bridges, overlooks), and areas affected by the 2021 Dixie Fire. Please adhere to all closures indicated by CLOSED signs. View a map of key emergency closures. Use caution when recreating through burned areas. Standing dead trees can fall without warning. Learn more about burned area safety.
Park Roads	The Lassen National Park Highway is closed to through traffic for Winter Season. Visitors can still reach the park via Hwy. 36 to the Kohm Yah-mah-nee Visitor Center or via Hwy. 44/89 to the Loomis Plaza at Manzanita Lake. *Extreme weather conditions may limit or close access. See Alerts above for current information. Warner Valley, Juniper Lake, and Butte Lake Roads are closed to vehicle travel for the snow season.
Kohm Yah-mah-nee Visitor Center (Southwest Area)	*Open Wednesday - Sunday 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Lassen Association Park Store Open Wednesday - Sunday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm. Lassen Cafe & Gift Shop Open Friday - Sunday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm. Food selection is limited to prepackaged snacks and drinks. *Extreme weather conditions may limit hours. See Alerts above for current information. The electric vehicle charging station is offline. Oversnow camping is off-limits at the South West Campground due to present Dixie fire hazards. Oversnow camping will be available in back country areas as allowed by the Back Country Management Plan, permit is required. Food storage requirements are in effect until Dec 1st 2022. Alternate oversnow camping is available on National Forest land, and Morgan Summit Winter area.
Manzanita Lake Area	Loomis Museum closed for the season. The Manzanita Lake Camper Store is closed for the winter season. Manzanita Lake Campground is closed. View status and closure dates of park campgrounds. Heated restrooms at the Loomis Plaza are open throughout winter.
Oversnow Route Condtions	All trails are snow-covered, others are inaccessible due to seasonal road closures. View oversnow route conditions. View the status and conditions of all hiking trails (Generally updated May through October.)
Campgrounds	All Park Campgrounds are closed for the winter season. View status and closure dates of park campgrounds. Camping in self-contained vehicles, such as motorhomes and trailers, is permitted in the Southwest parking area year-round. Large trailers and RVs must park in appropriate marked spaces. Do not take additional parking space. Fires and fire pans including portable gas fire pits are prohibited in the winter.

 

Weather, Webcams & Snow Depths

Snow depths are updated when there is a significant change. Learn more about Lassen's snowpack and snowpack surveys.
There are no regular patrols into the interior of the park in the winter; information is provided only for the Manzanita Lake and Southwest Areas.

Last updated - March 30, 2023

Weather Forecast	Webcam	Approximate Snow Depth (Nov - Apr)
Manzanita Lake 5,900 feet	Offline indefinitely	7 feet of snow depth. View Oversnow Route Conditions.
Southwest Entrance 6,700 feet	Facing north from back of Kohm Yah-mah-nee Visitor Center	~17 ft of snow depth. View Oversnow Route Conditions.
Lassen Peak 8,250 feet		Daily sensor measurements Monthly manual measurements (Jan - Apr).
Northern California Area	View area webcams

California Cooperative Snow Surveys

Learn about Lassen's Snowpack

Lower Lassen Peak (LLP) | Lake Helen 8200 feet elevation | Feather River Basin

March Survey
Survey Date - March 3
Snow Depth - 179 inches (14.91 feet | 4.5 meters)
Water Content - 70.5 inches (5.88 feet | 1.8 meters)
Density - 39%

Average of the April 1 survey data - 78.9 inches water content (39%) is 89% of the April 1 average.

New Manzanita Lake (MNZ) | Manzanita Lake 5900 feet elevation | Pit River Basin

March Survey
Survey Date - March 2
Snow Depth - 61.5 inches (5.13 feet | 1.56 meters)
Water Content - 15.5 inches (1.29 feet | .39 meters)

Average of the April 1 survey data - 8 inches water content (25%) is 194% of the April 1 average.

 

Status of Roads in the Park

Lassen Volcanic National Park Highway and other park roads are closed for the winter snow season, typically November through May.

Refresh your browser (hit F5) to view the most recent information.

Road Section	Status	Detail
Lassen National Park Highway A 30-mile section of Highway 89 between Highway 36 and Highway 44.	Closed	Lassen Volcanic Highway is Closed to Through Traffic for the Winter Season. When open: the park highway connects the northwest and southwest entrance of the park. Vehicles over 45 feet and commercial vehicles are not allowed.
Butte Lake Road	Closed	Campground is closed. . This 6-mile road is unpaved/gravel passable by all vehicles. It starts at the junction of Hwy 44 and dead ends at Butte Lake Area. Unmaintained Road.
Warner Valley Road (access to Drakesbad Guest Ranch)	Closed	Road and area is closed for Dixie Fire repair. Road is not recommended for RVs, trailers, and low clearance vehicles. The 17-mile-long remote road begins off of Hwy 36 in Chester. The last 3-mile section is unpaved/dirt.
Juniper Lake Road	Closed	Be alert in burned areas. Learn more about burned area hazards. Campground is closed. Recommended only for high-clearance vehicles. Road is generally not advised for RVs, trailers or vehicles with very low clearance.This remote road travels north from Chester (Hwy 36E). It is paved for the first 6 miles. The remaining 7 miles are rough gravel and rock. A section of the county road just before the park boundary has large rocks and hazards.

 

Roads to the Park

Check conditions for area roads (map of the area) on the CalTrans QuickMap or Highway Conditions lookup page; or view current conditions on CalTrans webcams. The park does not determine chain control restrictions - this is determined by CalTrans. Please go to the CalTrans website for area chain control information.

State Route (SR) 44/89 provides access to the Northwest Entrance/Manzanita Lake Area
State Route (SR) 36/89 provides access to the Southwest Entrance / Kohm Yah-mah-nee Visitor Center

 

COVID-19 Response

The National Park Service (NPS) is working service-wide with federal, state, and local public health authorities to closely monitor the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 related modifications to park facilities are listed in the Conditions Summary section above. We will continue to monitor all park functions to ensure that operations and services adhere to CDC guidance and take any additional steps necessary to protect public health. View the NPS Public Health Update webpage for additional information about COVID-19 response.