Hike Mt. Shasta

Powerful winds whip the clouds around the summit of Mount Shasta.

Over the last week, the Pacific Northwest has seen some intense winter weather. What some reports considered the equivalent of a class 3 hurricane slammed into the states of Washington, Oregon and (the northern part of) California. I have lived in Mount Shasta for 17 years now and I have nor recollection of a storm of this magnitude hammering this area this early in the season. There have been other notable storms a little earlier, most recently in 2022 but even that storm, heralding the coming of the Long Winter did not measure up to this unusual event.

Things started off rather benign. The day before the storm, which was forecasted to leave 10 inches or so, was beautiful. The powerful winds that buffeted Mount Shasta were the only real indicator that the weather was in a state of considerable flux. Sunrise was beautiful, with the clouds swirling around the mountain and the sunlight reflecting off the recent snow.

By the time I got back into town, the sun had swung far enough to the south that Mount Shasta was bathed in the glorious, autumn morning light. I love these kind of conditions on the mountain. All the details seem to pop and the entire mass of the volcano just seems to glow. However, the lenticulish clouds that formed around the summit were prophesying the incoming onslaught.

The forecast for the storm was for a night and a day of intense wind and snow. After that, it was supposed to turn to rain for a couple of days with warmer temperatures. The rain was expected to be copious, with the report anticipating 3 inches. When you get a lot of snow and then a heap of warm rain, that is the recipe for a sloppy, sloppy mess. And so it was.

The snow started slowly on Tuesday and only a couple inches had accumulated when I went to bed. That night in continued to snow but only a few more inches were added before sunrise. However, throughout the day the snowfall increased and by the afternoon, when I went out to plow, it had piled up to 25 inches. It snowed a couple more inches after that and around 8pm I measured 27 inches. Then at 10pm the rain began. The snow was already heavy, with very high water content. The rain was going to make it worse.

The above progression of the snow accumulation in my backyard is somewhat deceptive. The winds were so intense that it kept it from accumulating too much in open areas, while deep drifts were built up elsewhere. The front of my house is more sheltered and does not get the wind manipulation. We therefore take our measurements there, rather than the back. However, what this progression does show is the damage done by the snow. 5 frames into the gallery, note the massive chunk of oak that fell. This is the top of one of our favorite trees. Several other trees lost limbs massive and small, weighted down by the wet, heavy snow.

Once the rain set in, clearing the snow was a mess. As I sheared off the top 24 inches, I exposed 3 inches of standing water wherever I went. This was by far the sloppiest conditions I have had at my house.

Needless to say, this feels about right. I believe the inches in Mount Shasta reflects the water content of the snow as well as the inches of rain we received. No matter what, it felt like a lot. It’s nice to see that Alturas could take it easy though. I know that is high desert out there, but sheesh!

Saturday morning, the storm finally broke up and Mount Shasta started to emerge from the storm. Though clouds still partially obscured the mountain, it was gloriously white as it has not been since the end of last winter. I can only imagine how much snow accumulated at the higher elevations. It must be fantastic up there.

I headed out into the Shasta Valley to see how things looked. There was water surging through every drainage possible. I love the valley when it is like this. It is typically so dry, but when water is everywhere, it is like a paradise.

The Shasta River was running strongly. No doubt Lake Shastina is rising substantially right now.

Parks Creek was also in fine form, though I expected it to have a bit more water in it. Regardless, it is a great start to the winter for these watersheds.

All the rain that fell meant a return of the pools that form in the Shasta Valley. While conditions weren’t right for any great sunset shots, it was nice just to have the reflections back.

When the sun set on Mount Shasta, I knew it would be a few more days until I saw the mountain again. More weather, though much gentler in nature was coming through. The next week or so though, especially around Thanksgiving, will be gorgeous. I can’t wait to get out and see how things look. It will also be a needed respite from the intense weather we just went through.