Wow! We just went on one of the best hikes I've ever been on!
The hike to Kings Creek Falls at Lassen Volcanic National Park was absolutely breathtaking. Most of the trail ran alongside the creek and the sound of all that water rushing by is enough to make you forget about everything else...
The views along the way are equally amazing and I highly recommend this wonderful hike.
We don't seem to see as many birds when we go on hikes (as opposed to hanging out around Manzanita Lake), but we did manage to spot a juvenile Townsend's Solitaire!
I just love how cute and spotted juvenile birds are this time of year...
(I've posted some video of this little guy at the end of the post.)
A little chipmunk hiding out near the trail...
And again, I couldn't help but notice all of the beautiful wildflowers blooming in the park and around the trail...
There are lots of birds to see and hear at the Kings Creek picnic area, but they fly around so quickly from tree to tree that they are virtually impossible to take a photo of!
This isn't the greatest photo of a Dark-eyed Junco we've ever taken, but I had to post it for proof!
In the photo below, there's a Yellow-rumped Warbler. I cherish every clear photo I've ever gotten of one because I know how quick and uncooperative they can be. (This isn't one of those photos, but what's a bird blog without pictures!)
And finally, we spotted a brand new bird for our lifelist near Lake Helen! Apparently Clark's Nutcrackers are super common at Lassen, but this is the first one we've ever knowingly seen...
If you're wondering what the Kings Creek Falls look like (spectacular!), head on over to my travel blog Vaughn the Road Again where I've posted pics of the trail and the ah-mazing waterfalls. (Yes, there was more than one!)
Here's some video of the juvenile Townsend's Solitaire:
I'm going to have to brush up on my wildflower identification! We saw so many blooming at Lassen Volcanic National Park that I want to know what their names are!
We stopped and had a picnic near Kings Creek and it was so lovely to listen to the water and the birds while we ate our lunch...
No, you can't have a bite of my sandwich, Mr. Steller's Jay!
These little purple flowers are growing all over the park...
They don't look like much from far away, but when you get up close to them you can see their pretty purple blooms...
It's still incredibly smoky in our area from all of the wildfires (you can read my post about the Carr Fire here), but we didn't let that stop us from venturing up to Lassen Volcanic National Park to take in some mountain scenery.
Manzanita Creek is one of my favorite spots, and even through the smoke it didn't disappoint.
The Elephant Seal Overlook at Point Reyes National Seashore sure lives up to its name! I've never seen an elephant seal before. Boy, are they big and loud!
It's late summer and a little early for their breeding season, but we saw two (fighting?) right there in Drakes Bay...
I don't know anything about these curious creatures, but we sure enjoyed watching them swimming around causing a stir...
The gulls on the shore didn't seem to be bothered much, probably because the area bears the seals' name and not theirs!
We also spotted a few Harbor Seals in the bay...
Their cute little faces pop up every once in a while and spotting them becomes a fun game...
Here are a couple more wildflowers from along the path, even more different than the ones I posted yesterday...
