Saturday, January 28, 2012

Manzanita Lake, Lassen Volcanic National Park

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Lassen Peak Reflection on Manzanita Lake, Lassen Volcanic National Park, CA
The picture above is my favorite among the hundreds of pictures I took at Lassen Volcanic National Park. In fact, it is my laptop's wall paper right now. This is the first picture I posted here in my blog which I did not reduce the size all the way to a 550 pixels width for faster uploading. I still reduced it though from an original size of 7 MB to 1.2 MB to give my site more uploading space. But the 1.2 MB is good enough for screen saver if in case anyone is interested to have the above piece in their screen.
If Bumpass Hell was filled with steaming and geothermal action, the 1.8 mile loop walk around the lake was simply quiet and very relaxing. The water was surprisingly not that cold, however, we did not bring any swim wear with us, so, we passed the opportunity to swim in this lake. There were a few people kayaking in the lake, and I took the liberty of taking some shots with them in the picture. 
Kayaking at Manzanita Lake
However, as they get nearer, they created more ripples in the lake that the reflection of Lassen Peak was lost, thus I settled for the above picture with them, with a little bit of reflection still. Also, they actually shifted their direction away from where we were later.
Large Old Growth Jeffrey Pine Forest, Manzanita Lake
Around the lake, the trail winds between tall and big trees.  
Some of the the trees have light green lichens hanging from the trunk or the branches.
Light Green Lichens
Lichens on the Branch, Lassen Peak, and Manzanita Lake
The forest actually have a lot of different kind of lichens hanging on the tree, some grey, some bright green, some orange, which is actually a happy news for the environment here. In places where the air is very dirty, no lichens survive usually.
Another  interesting observation we had is seeing how a mother bird feeds her baby. The mother bird dives for food, and then, give it to the baby bird. So sweet to look at. Would have been nice if I had videocam, or if my lens can zoom enough to capture the moment. The pictures below were cropped just to enlarge the action.
Mom Dives for Food
Mom Gives Baby Food
The mom was a very active mom, always diving and always giving something to her babies. The babies took turns in being fed. The one who was fed tried to follow mom as close as possible. The South East side of the lake has some mother and baby geese as well.
Geese Family
The scenery above reminded me of Ratty's wonderful experience with the geese family.
Hikers Enjoying the View at Manzanita Lake
We had a simple lunch ( picnic style) at Manzanita Lake, and afterwards, we took a last glimpse of its calm beauty before moving to our next destination.
♥♥
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20 comments:

  1. The first photo is really good, nice reflection. I saw the difference with the ripples and the clear and smooth waters. You truly had a wonderful adventure, too bad you didn't get the chance to dip in the lake. It's rare to fins tolerable waters here for swim =)

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  2. These are beautiful pictures, Betchai! I love the water, mountains, trees, lichens and geese. I would not have known about this peaceful place if not for your blog. Thank you for sharing.

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  3. Wonderful photos, Betchai! I don't know which one is my favorite..The nice calm water is really relaxing me right now..

    Love it!

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  4. I am so excited to see your old and big trees, they are simply beautiful. We are so small compared to them. Really love them.

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  5. Another panoramic post by you. I like it.

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  6. Oh, I like the one with the fat trees! It is happy; it sings!

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  7. I love that first picture of the lake as well. It's exactly the kind of picture I used to search for when I was looking for computer wallpaper. Now I can use my own. I always stop to watch when I see a mother bird feeding her babies. A thing like that makes me think of intelligence and love. The first thing I thought when I saw the big trees was, I wonder how high the squirrels climb them. :)

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  8. The first photo so beautiful! I like the reflection in the water. I love the tall giant trees of the Jeffrey Pine Forest! : )

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  9. I love the trees in the forest and of course the ducks!!! As usual your pics bring such peace to me!Thank you!

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  10. How cool would that be, to swim in a lake, with snow covered mountains in the background, awesome. I love all your pics, but I have said this before there is something special in your tree pics. I don't know what, but I love them.

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  11. Gorgeous photos, as always, betchai. I love that snow-capped mountain...

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  12. Again with the beautiful images!! The mother feeding her children, very cute.

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  13. I like all the photos but i love the photo of Lassen Peak with a reflection on the lake. It's beautiful!

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  14. Fantastic photos.

    The first one is my favourite as well. Looks like a fairy land !!

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  15. Great photos here again Miss Beth... I like the lichens... :D

    Wow, you were able to witness nature's wonder there with the mother bird and her young ones... I envy that experience... hehe...

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  16. wow, that's such a jaw dropping scenery.
    You are so fortunate to be able to witness all this!

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  17. I like your "Life is like a hike..." saying and it is so true. Thank you for sharing your beautiful Mt. Lassen photo. Lunch is more enjoyable with such a beautiful view.

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  18. You sure have beautiful places to visit. How far do you usually travel from home on a weekend outing?

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  19. I love the last picture with three people looking at the view! It is that awe moment that tells how beautiful nature really is!

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  20. the geese family photo is so beautiful! ..just curious as to what you had for lunch :-)...how I wish I could one sweet day join you for a walk right there!

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THANK YOU SO MUCH!!