Mt. Shasta – The History, The Myth, The Mountain

Mt. Shasta, a stratovolcano that rises 10,000 ft. from the Sacramento Valley in Northern California, marks the southern tip of the Cascade Mountain Range. Second in height only to Washington's Mt. Rainer, Mt. Shasta is the most massive volcano in the Cascades, with 108 cubic miles of earth piled nearly 3 miles up into the sky.

The History

What's been exhumed through rising magmas of the subducted Juan de Fuca plate is quite an eye catcher. The neighboring peak, Shastina, and three other overlapping volcanic cones mark the historical eruptions that have amassed what we survey and describe as Mt. Shasta. Making this mountain unique is the lack of glacial scars and prominent features, such as the Red Banks, left by what is considered recent volcanic activity in geological times.

As an avid outdoorsman from the eastern seaboard, I'll testify that we have no landmark that compares to Mt. Shasta. After being in its vicinity, however, I've gained a respect for it and now understand why there are many myths about this geographical location.

The Myth

People have spoken of spiritual beings burrowed a mile beneath the surface known as the Lemurians. In other legends glaciers descended from heaven guided by god's hands to the summit of Mt. Shasta and brought life to us as we know it today. Several Indian tribes warn that to ascend above the tree line is disrespectful to the gods and marks one's soul for life. Safe passage is given only to those bestowed the highest honor of their death march. These honored few pass above the tree line en route to the summit of this massive volcano.

The Mountain

There's more to Mt. Shasta than its size, altitude, and myths. To climb to the summit is no easy task, and is seldom attempted unless weather permits. Nevertheless, there are over 5,000 travelers that attempt such a feat every year. Almost all the attempts are made from late spring through the summer months when avalanche dangers has subsided and daylight hours are longer.

There are several technical routes that ascend the ridges and steep glaciers. There's also a traditional route known as the John Muir trail that sees the most traffic up through Avalanche Gulch. It's estimated that less than half of the people that attempt to summit Mt. Shasta do so on their first attempt. Maybe this is due to the fact that most of the 5,000 are ill-experienced and poorly-conditioned, attempting this as their first 14,000-ft. mountain in California.

But I'll still stick to my excuse that I traveled as far as the weather would safely let me go with the time at hand I had to make my attempts.

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Shasta