Hike Mt. Shasta

Evening sunlight illuminates Mount Shasta after a winter storm.

After a remarkably dry winter, a real snow storm finally rolled through the Mount Shasta area. Up until now, we have gotten a little rain and a little snow, but no big systems really dropped much of the white stuff. Nonetheless, as many know, March tends to be one of the months with the most significant snowfall around here. I have been saying that I would not really be panicking about the winter unless we got through March without a big storm. Thankfully the winter finally produced. As I noted, I returned to Mount Shasta from Sonoma County to find several inches of snow on the ground. This was followed a few days later by a significant storm that dropped a couple feet of snow at my house.

My front yard during a brief break in the storm. 

This was easily the biggest storm since the big one that hit in January of 2017. That storm dumped several feet and compared to that, this was only a moderate amount of precipitation. Nonetheless, during what has been shaping up to be another drought winter, the copious snow was welcome indeed, even if it meant pulling out the blower and clearing off my copious driveways, as well as those that access the cabin. My kids were more than eager to get outside and play. Digging seems to be their activity of choice for some reason, though my older son loves to stand in the snow being ejected from my snowblower. Go figure.

While the storm was significant, it really did not compare to the big one from last year. That one nearly overwhelmed the roads and was a tremendous amount of work to dig out of. This one really needed two passes with the snowblower and that was about it. For comparison, here is a shot from last year’s snowmageddon and one from a similar spot this year:

Obviously, the volume does not compare. I am grateful for what we have received regardless. Going through a winter without at least one big storm would mean a miserable snow pack during the summer. It is not great now, but at least there is actually a snow pack. The drought winters of 2013 and 2014 were horribly dry and this has easily blown past those and builds on the recovery of last year’s excellent winter. Even in town, the activity seems to be buzzing. The ski park is open and businesses that serve the outdoor community are busy. Winter is really here in Mount Shasta and just in time too, since spring will be upon us in short order.

After being in Sonoma County for a week and then coming back to storms, it was great to finally see Mount Shasta again as the storm broke. The mountain is laden with snow and was just beginning to pick up some color as the sun began to set. Shadows were cast and disappeared and clouds rolled by in the fading light. It was magnificent as always.