Day 4: Wednesday June 6th 2007 |
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Red Bluff, CA |
Lassen Mountains |
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I left the farm and headed towards Redding as there were some hot springs I wanted to visit. The springs were down a long not well maintained road about 20 miles to the northeast of Redding. Along the route I was rewarded with vistas of the volcanic Lassen Wilderness , which I Should have visited, whose 8000+ foot peaks still had snow on top of them. After the 10 miles drive down Big Bend road i reached the "town" of big bend. This town was eerie in the sense of twilight zone. A combination of deranged Desert rats and freaky mountain type people sped down the dirt streets in their dune buggies, dirt bikes and quads. |
Big Bend Road |
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Kosk Creek Hot Spring |
Kosk Creek |
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Kosk creek |
Off Roading Near the Springs |
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After 2 more miles on dirt, i found the trail to the hot springs, which were along the Kosk Creek shortly before its convergence with the Pitt River. After a mild off road excusion I arrived at the Hot Springs. Hunt and Kosk Creek Hot Springs. There was a vault which appeared to be one source of hot spring water which flowed to the creek. Someone had attempted to build a pool at the river's edge to mix with the scalding water from the source. The mix was terrible, it was too hot in some places and too cold in others. Unsatisfactory to say the least. The i noticed a naked guy in another pool further down stream. I made my way over the ridge to see if his pool was any better. The guy was digging mud out of the bottom of the spring pool and i asked if I could join him because the other spring source was awful. He was not interested in company and directed me to another spring around the bend. |
Yours truly near Big Bend |
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When I arrived at that pool, it looked a little worse for the wear and hadn't been cleaned very recently but was still acceptable and I finally took a good dip. The water wasnt as hot as I like it, but still ok. I soaked for 10 or 15 minutes and scrambled back to the truck. I returned back down the Big Bend road and onto the 2 lane country highway once again. |
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More Off Roading |
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Burney Mountain |
Burney Falls |
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Burney Falls |
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I was now going to head up to Shasta to see the mountain of mythological proportions. Visions of black cherry and cream soda beverages burst into my head. I was also going to look for some rocks there as well. On the way I saw Burney Mountain near the wild west looking town of Burney, CA a hold over from the shootem up days of hitching posts, Saloons and gold prospectors. Shortly after i made the turn north towards Shasta, I found Burney Falls. The clear aqua marine water below the nearly 130 foot waterfall looked inviting for a swim, however the advertised 42-48 degree water instantly cured any desire to jump in. The amazing thing about this waterfall is the water seemed to emerge from the rocks on either side of the falls halfway down the cliff face. Theodore Roosevelt refered to the falls as the eighth wonder of the world. Almost like magic, this place worked hard to help boost my happiness and peacefulness. Things I missed: Ahjumawi Lava Springs State Park, Castle Crags State Park , Subway Cave |
Sign about the Falls |
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Driving towards Shasta |
Shasta Trinity Mountains |
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Shastina and Shasta |
Shastina and Shasta |
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Neat Shot huh?
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Sunset on the Mountains |
| I continued the journey on to Shasta enjoying mountain scenery and fir trees along the whole route. I made it to the town of Mount Shasta, with the summit of the 14162 foot mountain looming in the background like a juggernaut. An ever constant reminder of the area's volcanic past. Mount Shasta was charming and seemed interesting, however as the sun was going down and i still wanted to look for rocks near the north face i had to keep moving. I finally made it to Yellow Butte, a geological feature that seemed much different in structure to the surrouunding rock. I stopped and walked amongst the brush to find interesting and strange rocks. It was nearly dusk at this point and I found what looked good and picked it up. | |
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As I headed back, i passed the town of WEED and couldn't help but take a picture thinking of all of those crazy signs that used to appear in the pages of High Times.
The sun went down and I drove as fast as I could to chico the nearest town with a Marriott branded hotel. I arrived very late close to 11 or midnight. |
All in All, it was a wonderful day, filled with fun, beauty, and education covering 350 miles in 12 hours. |
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This page and photos are property of Scott Bledsoe who may be contacted by email at flacan_2000 at yahoo.com |
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