Mt. Shasta is the looming mountain that every driver passes when crossing the Oregon – California border on Interstate-5. This beautiful peak lures sight-seers, hikers, and backcountry enthusiasts alike. Mt. Shasta is the fifth highest mountain in California. A mountain that boasts eleventh in prominence in the USA… and you, yes you, can summit Mt. Shasta!
Details:
- Distance: 12 miles
- Time: 11-14 hours
- Elevation Gain: 7,000 ft
- Trailhead: Bunny Flat Trailhead
- Can you ski back to the car? Yes, if there’s snow
- Route-Finding Difficulty: Moderate
- Physical Exertion Difficulty: Advanced
- Map
Getting There:
The start of this climb begins at the Bunny Flat Trailhead. During the winter, the plowing stops here, which makes it easy to find as it is the end of the road. Driving out of the town of Mt. Shasta, you’ll follow the A10, also known as Everitt Memorial Hwy. The road to the trailhead is all paved, and the parking area is large. We went at the end of May, pulled a 16 ft trailer, and stayed two nights (the night before and the night after our climb). Dispersed camping is allowed at this trailhead. Many people sleep in their cars the night before their climb. When the snow has melted there are actually some campsites just below the parking area. These are more tent-friendly than trailer-friendly.
Decide whether you want to do this climb in one day, or split it into two days. There is a popular camping area at Lake Helens just before the start of the headwall climb if you’d like to break it up. If you decide to do the climb in one day, we suggest leaving the trailhead by 2-3 am to get to the summit by midday. This blog will talk about doing it in one day, and leaving at 3 am.
Summiting Mt. Shasta:
When you leave Bunny Flat trailhead, it will of course be dark! If you go later in the year, there are very clear signs and trails that lead you to Horse Camp. Please note, though, that if there is snow down to the trailhead still, you will need to make sure to have your route-finding skills ready. Make sure that after leaving the trailhead, you make a pretty quick left and go up a small hill. This makes sure you are on the left side of Avalanche Gulch as you hike up. If you go straight up through the trees from the trailhead, you will stay to the right of Avalanche Gulch. Eventually, you end up at a very beautiful point, (the end of the day hike trail), and you will see the way to the summit across a ravine that you won’t be able to get to!
From Horse Camp, you will gradually bear right as you continue hiking/skinning. If there is no snow, there is actually a path built out of rocks to help protect nature and provide a clear path. If there is snow, continue skinning up towards Lake Helens.
There is a small plateau after a long slog from Horse Camp, which provides another area to camp if you don’t want to go all the way to Lake Helens. From this plateau, up to Lake Helens is where we put our crampons on our boots and started carrying our gear on our backs. Although, if conditions are right you probably could skin the whole way to camp.
From Lake Helens, the climbing begins. It doesn’t look that far, but believe me, it will take a few hours to get up the headwall. Crampons, helmet, and ice axe are all required for this section of the climb, as it gets quite steep. There is often a boot pack up the headwall that you can follow. However, other times it’s not a clear path and you will have to make your own way.
Towards the top of the headwall is the ‘crux’ by Red Banks. There is a small opening between the rocks that you can get through, and then another slog to the next plateau. Upon reaching this next Plateau you will have a clear view of Misery Hill. This is where many people were expecting to see the summit. So prepare yourself ahead of time, because it’s another slog before you can see the summit. You should be able to get your skis back on and skin Misery Hill.
At the top of Misery Hill, you will finally see the summit! It flattens out considerably as you get closer to the peak, and then there’s a short final ascent to get on top.
You’ll go through a few rocky areas, and there’s usually a clear boot pack to the summit. Only a few people fit on the actual summit at one time. So grab a fellow climber and ask them to kindly snap a photo of you!
Getting Back to the Car:
Go down the way you came, and you should be able to start snowboarding from the top of Misery Hill. When we went at the end of May, Misery Hill was, unfortunately, dirt. So we had to hike down but if you go earlier it will be snowy.
Pick your line down! No, you don’t have to go through the “crux” to snowboard/ski down. Skiing down Avalanche Gulch is iconic. As you come down Misery Hill, it will be the area just to the right of where you came up, on the other side of Red Banks. If you traverse up higher, you have your pick of the Trinity Chutes, which all eventually dump you out in a similar spot above Lake Helens.
On a good snow year, you should have almost 7,000 feet to descend on this epic backcountry adventure! From Helens Lake, you can continue down and eventually ski through the trees right back to Bunny Flat Trailhead. We went a little late in the season. So we ended up having to hike out 2 miles on dirt, but we still got an epic run!
You can feel pretty good about yourself after summiting Mt. Shasta! It is not for the faint of heart, and it’s a quality feat to check off your bucket list!
PROS:
- Iconic Mountain Climbed!
- Really Gorgeous Views.
CONS:
- Mountain Experience Needed.
- Long Day!
THE SPLIT DECISION:
Jay’s Take: “Mt. Shasta was the hardest mountain I have ever climbed. It really was the first time I felt nervous that if I made a mistake, I was putting myself in danger or someone else below me in danger climbing the headwall. I wish I had taken a little more time before summiting Mt. Shasta to get my mountaineerins skills more dialed in so I could have just enjoyed the journey and not been so nervous. That being said, I loved snowboarding down. We had great conditions and the snow was just right for some fun carves. After the grueling hike up, strapping on my snowboard for the 4,000 ft. descent was the first time of the day I had an ear to ear grin.”
Tyese’s Take: “I love Mt. Shasta! I’m glad we did it in one day, to cut down on pack weight, but it was a really long day. I’d go a little earlier in the season next time so that we could ski all the way back to the car too. 2.5 miles on dirt after a day like that is a bit brutal. I was glad that there were a few fellow split boarders at the top with us also, to confirm that we could go down where we thought, as a lot of the research I did made it seem very obvious where to ski down but once up there you realize you aren’t quite skiing down exactly where you came up! Overall, loved the day, and slept for about 13 hours that night!”
Final Words:
Make sure to get the proper permits to summit Mt. Shasta. There is a free self-issued wilderness permit at the trailhead, and there is also a $25 summit permit available at the trailhead if you plan to go over 10,000 feet. Make sure you have the correct cash or a check for this, otherwise you can get this permit in town at Fifth Season Inc, the local outdoor shop. Also, make sure you have the right gear. Do not attempt this climb without crampons, an ice axe, and the know-how to self-arrest before you go.
Special Gear Used for Mt. Shasta
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Jay's Current Backcountry Gear
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Tyese's Current Backcountry Gear
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