Bumpass Hell
Lassen Volcanic National Park · near Chester / Mineral · Shasta Cascade
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- easy
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 3 miles
- Elevation gain
- 500 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- July–October (snow-dependent access) · The park's hydrothermal showpiece
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- No permit. Lassen Volcanic NP entrance fee. An easy, family-friendly hike — but STAY ON THE BOARDWALK: the ground is thin crust over boiling water (the trail's namesake fell through and lost his leg). Snow-dependent opening.
- How hard the permit is to get
- 1 of 5
What is here
- Features
- Largest hydrothermal area in the park · Boiling mud pots & sulfur vents · Boardwalk through 'hell' · Family-friendly · Otherworldly geology
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Not permitted
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- Bumpass Hell is on the main Lassen park road (Hwy 89), an easy pairing with the Lassen Peak summit (this guide) for a full volcano day. The steam and smell are strongest in the morning. Keep kids and everyone strictly on the boardwalk — the crust is genuinely dangerous. A geological highlight not to miss.
The guide
Bumpass Hell is Lassen's showpiece and one of the best short hikes in Northern California — an easy 3-mile round trip that desc…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Bumpass Hell — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 40.456, -121.503