Lave Bed National Monument and Beyond!

We were misinformed about Lava Bed National Monument. The first camper we talked to thought we were going to Lassen Volcanic National Park and yes, the roads were closed due to snow. The second camper we talked with about our travel plans said we should have no problem as the park was open year round with very little snow! So we left Fallon NAS and headed to Lava Beds National Monument. Traveling through Reno and north on US395 was a nice trip, but long.We arrived late in the afternoon so we didn't tour the caves until the next morning. We set up camp in the park campground. We had the place to ourselves except for one group of young campers and their chaperones.We toured Mushpot Cave and Sentinel Cave the next morning.

Mushpot is behind the visitor center and is the only lighted cave. It is lit with red rope lights along the trail.It also has real steps to get into the cave.
Sentinel Cave, on the other hand is a wild cave. Bob had us turn out our flashlights and took a picture. We found out that spelunking is not for Cathy. Her flashlight came on as soon as the camera clicked!We spent enough time in the visitor center for the kids to get their Junior Ranger badges.Bob and I enjoyed Lava Bed National Monument and hope to return when we can spend more time exploring all the caves and the historical areas.

From Lava Bed National Monument it was on to the Coastal Redwoods!