Growing up in Northern California, I always thought of "the mountains" as The Sierra. I had no idea at the time that there was another range - one that I'd become familiar with in Washington - The Cascades.
Always looking for new places to explore, Northern California has been a challenge. Certainly, there are places, but - at least for me - finding them has been difficult. Stumbling across the Lassen National Forest Backcountry Discovery Trail, I knew it wouldn't be a treasure trove of the absolute best the area had to offer, but it would most definitely scratch the surface and give me an idea of where to look for those little nuggets that surely exist.
So, already in the area - having recently completed the Plumas National Forest Discovery Trail - and with a couple days to explore, we climbed into California's Cascades. What we found was nothing like what we'd expected, the trail exceeding our expectations time after time.

