The Thousand Lakes Wilderness is located within the southern portion of the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington (state), Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as m ...

in northeastern California. The wilderness was established in 1964 with the passage of the

Wilderness Act The Wilderness Act of 1964 () is a federal land management statute meant to protect U.S. Wilderness Area, federal wilderness and to create a formal mechanism for designating wilderness. It was written by Howard Zahniser of The Wilderness Socie ...

and is administered by

Lassen National Forest Lassen National Forest is a United States national forest of 1,700 square miles (4,300 km2) in northeastern California. It is named after pioneer Peter Lassen, who mined, ranched and promoted the area to emigrant parties in the 1850s. Overv ...

. The area lies within Shasta County, midway between the town of

Burney Burney may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places * Burney, California, United States, an unincorporated town and census-designated place * Burney, Indiana, United States, an unincorporated community * Burney Falls, a waterfall in California * Burney (hill), hi ...

and

Lassen Volcanic National Park Lassen Volcanic National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in northeastern California. The dominant feature of the park is Lassen Peak, the largest lava dome, plug dome volcano in the wo ...

. Volcanic activity and glaciers have combined to create the current topography. The area is dominated by Crater Peak (8677 ft), the highest point in the Lassen National Forest. The lowest point in the wilderness, 5546 feet, occurs at the base of the volcano. This peak is a reminder of the glacial action that eroded the original, much larger Thousand Lakes Volcano and created the many small lakes and ponds scattered through the region. Some of the volcanic activity is relatively recent—Hall Butte is a cinder cone that erupted perhaps 500 years ago. Despite its name, there are considerably fewer than a thousand lakes—about seven major lakes lie within the wilderness. The largest is Eiler Lake, named after Lu Eiler the person who discovered Thousand Lakes Valley. All of the larger lakes contain populations of trout. Wildlife includes

black-tailed deer Black-tailed deer or blacktail deer occupy coastal regions of western North America. There are two subspecies, the Columbian black-tailed deer (''Odocoileus hemionus columbianus'') which ranges from the Pacific Northwest of the United States and ...

, black bear,

pika A pika ( , or ) is a small, mountain-dwelling mammal native to Asia and North America. With short limbs, a very round body, an even coat of fur, and no external tail, they resemble their close relative the rabbit, but with short, rounded ears. ...

pine marten The European pine marten (''Martes martes''), also known as the pine marten, is a mustelid native to and widespread in most of Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus, and parts of Iran, Iraq, and Syria. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red Lis ...

northern goshawk The northern goshawk has been split into two species based on significant morphological and genetic differences: * Eurasian goshawk The Eurasian goshawk (; ''Astur gentilis'', formerly ''Accipiter gentilis'') is a species of medium-large bird of ...

spotted owl The spotted owl (''Strix occidentalis'') is a species of true owl. It is a resident species of old-growth forests in western North America, where it nests in tree hollows, old bird of prey nests, or rock crevices. Nests can be between high a ...

pileated woodpecker The pileated woodpecker ( ; ''Dryocopus pileatus'') is a large, crow-sized woodpecker with a prominent red crest, white neck stripe, and a mostly black body. These woodpeckers are native to North America, where it is the largest confirmed extant ...

, and

Clark's nutcracker Clark's nutcracker (''Nucifraga columbiana''), sometimes referred to as Clark's crow or woodpecker crow, is a passerine bird in the family Corvidae, native to the mountains of western North America. The nutcracker is an omnivore, but subsists mai ...

. Even

elk The elk (: ''elk'' or ''elks''; ''Cervus canadensis'') or wapiti, is the second largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. ...

have been known to visit occasionally. There are four trailheads providing access into the wilderness and approximately of trails.

References

* * *

References

Further reading