9.29 Mount Shasta, mountaineering past Helen Lake
Man plans and G-d laughs is most apt. We had planned to hike the Clear Creek trail to the summit of Mount Shasta, a massive elevation gain of 7,800 feet (we flatter ourselves). However, on Friday after entering the town of Shasta, we learned that access to the trailhead was under snow for two miles. Okay, we thought, we’ll attempt Avalanche Gulch instead. The problem with that is it is under a particular thick covering of snow, too. As we did not have the right equipment and mindset for camping on the mountain in order to make it a two-day hike, we decided to commence at 3am on Sunday and see how far we could get. We did hire special equipment for the endeavor including fancy boots to give us a blister. However, as they say in some circles, ‘we don’t dig snow.’ The Ice Man Cometh (Robbie) while sun shines behind A view of our approach and climb—through the gulch Dawn breaks over Shasta “Nuts,” we said to our editor’s son, Robbie. “No thanks, Dad. Mom filled my backpa...