Reflection Lake

No permit or access details on file for this trail — check with the local land manager before you go.

<p>Reflection Lake wasn't always named such. In the late 1800s, the lake was lower in level and more indicative of a pond and was aptly named, Mud Lake. To attract more people to the area, a channel was dug to divert water from Manzanita Creek into Mud Lake. Trout were planted in the lake with an increased water level. For a few years, people paid the landowner to fish in the lake. Eventually, trout planting ceased.<br /> <br /> In 1926, park benefactor <a href="https://www.nps.gov/people/benjamin-franklin-loomis.htm">Benjamin Franklin Loomis</a> purchased 40 acres, which included the lake. Reflection Lake was one location that Loomis captured photographs of the 1914-1945 Lassen Peak eruptions. Loomis and his wife Estella donated their 40 acres, the Loomis Museum, and the adjacent seismograph building to the park in 1929.<br /> <br /> A healthy population of native tui chub fish thrive in the warmer water. Fish stocking ended completely in the park in the early 1990s to preserve natural riparian ecosystems. As a result, the lake attracts water birds such as Canada geese, great blue heron, snowy egret, and kingfisher.</p> <h4>Reflection Lake Route</h4> <p>A half-mile route (not a defined trail) circles the lake and is a shorter alternative to the 1.8-mile <a href="https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/walkmanzanitalake.htm">Manzanita Lake Loop</a>. The western shore offers unobstructed views of Chaos Crags and Lassen Peak, which are often reflected in the still lake. The route overlaps with the half-mile <a href="https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/walklilypond.htm">Lily Pond Interpretive Trail</a> on the eastern shore of Reflection Lake.</p>