Hike Mt. Shasta

The last two weeks have been extremely miserable. Consequent of the virulent flu season we find ourselves in, my entire family came down with the nasty little bug. We holed up for a while and only in the last few days have we all reemerged. I remain the one with the most lingering aspects of the affair but overall, I feel much better. Needless to say, in the midst of the sickness I did not get out and try to observe any of the sunrises, sunsets or other phenomena that went on around Mount Shasta. Between caring for sick kids and being wretched myself, life priorities took preeminence.

Thankfully, as we all now steadily improve, I finally had the health and the mountain conditions that warranted heading out. As has been my wont lately, I decided to head up towards Castle Lake and got an elevated view of the mountain. On my way there, I stopped and grabbed a couple of images of the stark rime ice on Black Butte.

The lack of snow but the brightness of the white ice really made the conditions stand out in the afternoon light. I continued on up toward Castle Lake and got there just as the alpenglow was beginning to intensify.

It had been so long since I had paid much attention to things outside, I was pleasantly surprised to see the moon rising alongside Mount Shasta. It was nearly a full moon at that!

I go into my favorite position up on a tall snowback and settled in to record the sunset. The clouds, which had seemed so interesting a short time earlier, began to dissipate. With the potential for really vibrant color in the sky going away with the clouds, I turned my attention to the shadows that form in Avalanche Gulch. I love how all the mounds and heaps cast crescent shadows and the edges of the domes seem to glow as the late fades and it lost. Up around Castle Lake is a great place to really highlight these details.

When the light was gone, the sky did in fact turn a deep purple, catching the last bit of glow as the earth spun away from the sun. Interestingly, I nice little disk formed above the mountain after the sun had set. It was a nice little touch to finish things off.

I am thankfully to be feeling better and have a chance to finally get out for some Mount Shasta color in 2020. May there be much more yet to come. Also, don’t get this flu, it’s a nasty little bugger!

A spectacular October lenticular was one of my highlights of the year.

In my year end post last year I stated: “Here in Mount Shasta, the year of our Lord 2018 was another beautiful circuit around the sun. The mountain remained much as it always is, massive, imposing and reigning over the landscape in splendid isolation.” This not only proved to be true for 2019, but even exceeded the last year. The beginning of the year saw some stunning lenticular activity and some incredible sunrises and sunsets. During the summer I took my family on a roadtrip to Indiana and back, hitting many highlights of the west along the way. The rest of the summer proved to be one of the most beautiful and temperate in recent memory. Making it even better, there was minimal smoke so the season was maximized for folks looking to get outside. The gorgeous summer eventually gave way to the most beautiful fall I have experienced in my 12ish years in Mount Shasta. Then the snow came and the wintry weather began with a bang. Though the snow has been off and on, we did manage to have a white Christmas.

In the midst of all the adventures, I also managed to get the 2nd edition of my wine country hiking guide completed. It really has been a great year. I pray this was the case for as many people as possible and the next year – and decade – are equally great. May God bless us all.

And now on to the year in images!

2019 started off with a bang. There were a handful of memorable lenticulars and the snow came down and buried the area in a deep blanket of powder. All in all, it was a good start to the year.

February continued the trend and saw a bit more snow and more great lenticular clouds. It had been a beautiful winter and this continued through the second month of the year.

Like the classic adage notes, March came in like a lion and ended like a lamb. Winter was in full swing at the beginning of the month and when the month ended, the first inklings of spring were manifest. All the water, both snow and rain, that had come down during the winter made for a deep snowpack and a high water table. I was able to get great reflection shots since one of my favorite puddles was sustained well into spring.

The deep snow remained in the high country but around town the forests were dried off and it was time to hit the lower elevation trails once again and smell the warm scent of the pine. Higher up, the snow was indeed deep yet and it looked to be a long time before the high country trails would open up this year.

Spring was in full-swing in May. The Shasta Valley was verdant, the creeks and rivers ran full and the mountain was cloaked in white. There were a couple late-season lenticulars, which added some nice interest to trips out to the valley.

June yielded the first trips up to the high country, where creeks were swollen with runnoff. Scrambling on rocks and enjoying seasonal waterfalls was a must. Meadows were green and wildflowers were beginning to emerge. Mount Shasta itself remained cloaked in white, waiting for the temperatures to climb a little higher before thawing out. This month was truncatated, since my family and I departed on our cross-country roadtrip, not to return until July.

Roadtrip:

Leaving in June, we returned in July, having driven to Indiana and back. We camped, visited family and friends, hiked and had a marvelous time exploring the mountain west and the Great Plains. It was an eye-opening trip for my three kids! Read about it here.

After returning from the long journey, we were home a couple of days before heading out for Yosemite. Almost a week later we finally came back to Mount Shasta for good. It had been a long month of travel but, my goodness, what an experience for my kids. Life is hard!

Once home in Mount Shasta, we were briefly beset by some smoke. This was its only significant presence during the summer. After the previous year, this proved to be a fantastic and much-needed respite. Indeed, the summer was proving to be quite mild, with very few days with either smoke or high temperatures. It honestly could not get much better.

By August, the snow had finally melted off of Mount Shasta enough for the Old Ski Bowl to be opened up. It was time to hit some great trails on that part of the mountain. The highlight for me came when I finally got my son, 9 at the time, to the rim of Mud Creek Canyon. It is an absolutely spectacular sight, and one I was grateful to share with him.

With a smaller-than-normal window to enjoy the Old Ski Bowl area trails, we made the most of it, picnicking, hiking and just generally enjoying the area through the month of September. However, by the end of the month the sage and rabbitbrush was beginning to flower, indicating that autumn was not far off…

October proved to be one half of the prettiest fall I have experienced in Mount Shasta. Great weather, good fall color and excellent overall conditions made this a happy and relaxing season. We continued hiking, both on Mount Shasta and in the Trinity Divide. Only the knowledge that the Old Ski Bowl would soon close dampened the enjoyment of the month.

November continued the gorgeous fall conditions. Though the Old Ski Bowl did indeed close, we still enjoyed the trails in the Trinity Divide. The weather and fall color remained tremendous. That is, until Thanksgiving. Just before the grateful celebration, the snow came down and deposited over 2 feet at my house. Winter had arrived.

Following the snow from the previous month, December began with rain which was then followed by a deep fog. This finally burned off, leaving the remainder of the month to beautiful sunrises and sunsets and some small flurries of snow. It was a good end to a great year.

We are very blessed these days. I pray that everyone has a great new year, a great new decade and that we all enjoy the many blessings we have been given!

A spectacular Mount Shasta sunrise demands a little time-lapse.

I am still finishing up my year-in-images and I had hoped to head out and photograph the last sunset of the decade but life intervened and three sick kids have kept me at home this afternoon. Nonetheless, I wanted to post something and I wanted to focus on a topic that is not my normal subject matter. It then occurred to me that I made a few GIF’s at the beginning of the year and then didn’t make anymore until a couple days ago animating that last epic sunrise. I thought it would be fun (for me, if no one else) to track down the little animations that were created and compare them.

The first one I made was actually from a sunrise in December of 2018, a few days after Christmas. It didn’t occur to me that I had enough images to animate the sunrise until a few days later. This was a really beautiful sunrise, the clouds reflected the pink and then orange light back onto the ground, giving the whole area a strange glow. It was a great way to end the year.

This was not a planned animation, as the changing size and position of the mountain indicate. I was trying to illustrate the flow pattern of the cloud being created by the summit of Mount Shasta.

Intended as a follow up to the previous animation, this GIF demonstrated the strange relationship between the pennant cloud (my term for it) and the lenticular above it. When a section of the pennant broke away, a corresponding portion of the lenticular broke away as well and drifted off in tandem. It was very strange.

Capturing a January sunset, this was my first attempt at deliberately capturing images for use in a GIF. It was a beautifully colorful sunset, with the color going from orange to pink to nothing. Alpenglow is awesome.

A nice reflection and some good morning color made this a quality animation. It was my second deliberate effort to make a time lapse.

An attempt at the reverse of the previous GIF, this sunrise from McCloud was a wonderful sight. Standing around watching the color intensify is tough work but someone has to do it. For some reason, though, I find the previous GIF more impressive. Maybe it is the fact that I had more images to work with and add together.

This GIF was an attempt to document the turbulent waves of a small lenticular on top of Mount Shasta. While the currents are fascinating, I do think that this did not translate into an animation very well. This is probably the case because there was no color in the sunrise, leaving the image a bit deflating. It was still an interesting exercise though.

After this GIF, my family’s trip sucked most of the air out the room and sidelined little projects like this. It honestly didn’t occur to me to pick it back up until a few days ago. Fortunately I did, to what I would consider spectacular results.

I think this is easily the most impressive of the GIF’s I have created thus far. The way the light is present, then fades then erupts in glorious fashion is incredibly dramatic. I like the way the lenticular shadow can be tracked as well. I hope to do more like this in the future!

My memory may be failing me but the last two weeks have been the foggiest I have experienced in the 12 years I have lived in Mount Shasta. I posted a few days ago on the misty shroud that had fallen on the area. Growing up in Sonoma County, I am no stranger to fog but the marine layer that is common down there does not usually sit so close to the ground and typically burns off before noon. The fog that has afflicted us lately has been thick, hugging the ground, and persistent, generally lingering throughout the day.

Fortunately, the mountains are a good remedy to the low-lying mists and heading up to Castle Lake or Bunny Flat, where the fog lies in the valley far below. Last week I headed up toward Castle Lake. This week I decided to beat the fog by climbing up onto Mount Shasta.

While it was quite dreary in the valley, on Mount Shasta the morning sun shined brightly. Across the sea of fog, Mount Eddy rose regally, also basking in the sunshine.

In some places it was possible to see above and below the fog. Unlike last week, this pall sat higher off the ground, allowing a little light to sneak in a few places. Like Mount Eddy, the high, snowy peaks of the Castle Crags Wilderness glowed in the morning sunlight.

Once again, Black Butte rose dramatically above the mist, parting the fog as is it sailed swiftly pass the dusky pyramid.

Higher up on Mount Shasta, other prominent landmarks were visible. Here the twin summits of the Grey Rocks and Castle Spire make a dramatic sight.

Unlike the Strawberry Valley, the McCloud area did not have a thick fog overhead. Lassen Peak could be seen clearly in the distance.

Mount Shasta itself shimmered like crystal in the light of the rising sun. Morning or evening, this mountain never ceases to amaze me.

Casaval Ridge looked particularly impressive this morning. The exposed crags were fringed with rime ice, giving them a striking highlight. This is one of the most rugged spots on Mount Shasta.

Higher up the ridge, rime ice covered most of the crags. I love it when the mountain gets this stark, white appearance.

Unlike the fog from last week, the blanket burned off by midday today. Hopefully it won’t return. With a lot of snow and rain approaching, the sky will be overcast enough. I can do without a veritable cloud sitting on the deck.

In case I don’t get another post up beforehand, Merry Christmas!

While the beautiful fall suddenly gave way to a furious snow storm, the snow has since given way to copious rains and fog. The rain melted much of the snow and the fog has been dense and constant. Indeed, I can’t remember a span of such sustained fog here in Mount Shasta as there has been the last few days. While the forecast has been for “sunny” weather, that has only proven true for areas above 5,000 feet. Everything below that has been socked in the dark, damp soupy shroud. Fortunately there is the potential to climb higher than the fog and get perspectives on the landscape in clearer skies. Monday morning presented one such opportunity and I headed up to Castle Lake to get an elevated view of the area above the fog. It proved to be a glorious morning.

With no clouds in the sky, the sunrise on Mount Shasta wasn’t the most interesting thing to observe. Indeed, it was the fog settled in the Strawberry Valley and extending further north and enveloping the Shasta Valley.

Black Butte in particular appeared as an island in the fog, surrounded as it was on all sides by the mist. It proved to be a particularly beautiful sunrise on this peak.

The fog seemed to stretch deep into Oregon, overwhelming notable peaks like Soda Mountain and Pilot Rock. The only visible landmark in the Beaver State was stately Mount McLoughlin. The Fuji of southern Oregon rose a few thousand feet above the fog.

As I headed down from Castle Lake, I noticed the western end of Lake Siskiyou was not inundated by fog. This prompted me to head up South Fork Road to see what the conditions were like. This area tends to cling to its snow a little longer since the canyon casts shadows that aren’t dissipated for long during the winter. Sure enough, the road had about 10 inches of snow on it, but the ruts from trucks had cleared a path that was easy to follow. Even still, it became necessary to put my jeep into four-wheel drive to make it to one of my favorite views of Mount Shasta.

The river was flowing strong, which was no surprise after all the rain and snowmelt that has taken place over the last few days.

At my favorite vista, the brightly lit mountain contrasted sharply against the shaded river. I was hoping that a layer of fog might be visible from this perspective but the mists had not pushed far enough to be visible. Nonetheless, it was a beautiful sight.

It was especially gratifying to see Mount Shasta in all of its white majesty. The fog did not even seem to exist from this vantage point and the mountain glittered in the morning sun.

Eventually life beckoned and I had to return to the fog. However, I was able to return to Castle Lake for the sunset.

Just as with the morning, the valley was completely smothered in fog but the mountain remained untouched.

As the sun set, I imagined that I would have been completely unaware of the light show transpiring on the mountain if I had remained in town. As the alpenglow slowly climbed up the mountain it was obvious the fog would remain a while yet, stifling enjoyment of the brief good weather before another round of rainy weather passes through the area. I was glad to be able to enjoy a brief moment with the mountain.

I am glad the wet season has arrived. The mountain is white, the earth is being watered, our needs are being met. Christmas draws nigh and the season of lights is in full swing. I am grateful to have added to it by observing the lights on the mountain once again.

Clouds part to reveal a post storm sunset on Mount Shasta.

As is my wont during the storm times, I like to post updates on conditions around the mountain. The past week has certainly seen some “conditions”, with lots of snow, a strong dose of wind and some treacherous highways (at least in terms of foolish drivers). The first round came in on Tuesday and was followed by a second strong round of snow on Saturday night. Over 2 feet fell between these two parts of the storm. Unfortunately, the snow then shifted to rain and the winter wonderland swiftly turned to Slushfest 2019. I always prefer conditions to stay dry and cold after a good snow storm. It leaves things in beautiful winter state for a while. The slush is just annoying.

Here is how it played out in my backyard:

The snow obviously piled up pretty good but the rain and slightly warmer temps has begun the melting process already.

If there is a good side to the change in conditions, it is with the visibility of Mount Shasta and the surrounding area. Monday offered the first really good glimpse of the mountain, though it could only really be seen clearly from the north. Everything from Black Butte Summit to the south was still enveloped by the storm.

Mount Shasta after the storm.

Black Butte holding back the storm.

That evening things cleared a little more and offered a fantastic sunset.

Tuesday brought a heavy dose of fog through the whole area. The entire valley was blanketed in the thick mist and visibility was minimal. However, climbing above the fog meant clear skies and the chance for another fantastic Mount Shasta sunset. It’s nice to see the mountain white again!

Sunset over the fog-covered Strawberry Valley.

The last alpenglow on Mount Shasta.

It feels like it’s been winter for a while already. The amount of snow we got when there had been no precipitation at all was remarkable. It was Indian Summer and then it was winter. No rain or anything, just a big thumping heap of snow. Oh well, at least we have Christmas to look forward to in the midst of the now long-seeming winter before us. Hopefully we get a few more big storms and then an early spring…

Autumn serenity at Heart Lake.

Even though we are still officially in the fall season for almost a month, with the arrival of the snow just before Thanksgiving, fall has come to an end by my reckoning. It has been a most satisfying autumn season here in Mount Shasta. The weather was idyllic, the color was great, the mountain was graced with occasional lenticulars and the overall sense of the place was sublime. It really was the best fall in Mount Shasta that I can remember. I hope I can say that about all the ones to come!

To put a capstone on the passing season, I thought I might collect all of the images from the past couple months that really added up to make this time as great as it was. Consider it a post-Thanksgiving giving of thanks for what has transpired.

Also, I’ll get an early start and wish everyone a Merry Christmas! I have a feeling it’s going to be a great winter too!