Mt. Shasta

[truepatriot09]

A few of us are planning on heading to CA to do a two climb Mt. Shasta as a aclimatization climb before our attempt on Rainier a few days later. Anyone here ever do Shasta? Any advice? We're going in July, so tips on appropriate gear (mtneering boots v. hiking boots/bag temp ratings etc...) is very appreciated...

Thanks guys.

 

[jn316]

I did Shasta as a dayhike in July a few years ago. I wore leather Limmer boots; the snow was hard enough to need crampons most of the way up avalanche gulch, but shorts and sliding on the way down. The summit smelled like Berlin in the good old days when the mills were running! A great hike, long and high.

 

[TMax]

Shasta has had a lot of snow this year! Keep a close eye on conditions here; http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/mfr/TextProduct.php?wfo=mfr&pil=REC&sid=MFR and here; http://www.shastaavalanche.org/reports.htm
A group of us from this site are also planning on doing Shasta in July!

 

[giggy]

been doing some research myself - heading to do west face gully in july (with tmax), I don't think you really need to "acclimatize" per se - I think most do it as either a day hike or camp one night and go. Our plan will be to hike to about 10K camp, summit and head back down to car the next day.

I have not been on shasta yet, but safe to assume you will want to the same you will have on rainier -

this is what I had on rainier last summer - don't take hiking boots, mtnering boots will be drier, - you will be sloshing thru snow most of the time, take a 20 degree rated bag, decent tent to withstand winds, not much shelter up high. take a down jacket - you get cold quick at rest stops,

If dry weather, hike in softshells or other windprooff stuff. - gore-tex is ok, but when the sun comes up, your going to be roasting. even if its like 60 - it will feel like 100!! If it's bad weather, you most likely won't be climbing anyway.

sunscreen everthing - the sun is strong and reflects off the snow - inside your nostrils, ears, etc.. your private parts - yes - this is not a joke, sun reflects up the shorts off the snow!!

not sure your fitness level, but rainier has the potential to take a lot out of you or you will think its a walk in the park -

- so I would recommend doing that after a couple of days rest. Make sure your ready to head up, - its a 9K ele gain in 2 days - at altitude. other than that - I thought rainier was tough - but not as tough as many of the trip reports would lead you to believe. But - I had great weather. Bad wather, I would think it could turn into an unnerving epic - very quick.

one piece of advice would be to start nice and early. 1-2amish on summit days for both mtns. don't head up in bad weather - no matter what you have dealt with here in the northeast -

kevin rooney has done shasta a few times I think - he can probably offer great advice on it.

 

[hardrain]

old trip report

Jack Kerouac describes the climb and his experiences there in "The Dharma Bums."

 

[AOC-1]

I've been up Shasta a few times as well as Rainier. Giggy offers good advice, especially about sunscreen. In July, you will do fine with a +20 degree bag on both mountains. You could get away with an even lighter one (+35) if you don't plan to sleep above 10K ft. I've climbed Shasta earlier in the season with leather hiking boots. It really depends on the route and the forecasted freezing level. Low freezing levels at night mean good cramponing conditions in the a.m. (and dry feet). One difference between Shasta and Rainier - if you're heading up a non-technical route on Shasta (e.g., Avalanche Gulch), I don't think you need to start as early as on Rainier, and there can be a disadvantage to doing so.

Especially early alpine starts are advisable on Rainier because you want to be down before snow bridges begin to soften up. On non-glaciated routes on Shasta, however, you'll want to descend when the snow has softened up enough to allow for good glissading conditions. For example, I climbed the Avalanche Gulch route from Lake Helen (10K) in about 4 1/2 hours and descended in less than 1 hour. A later start (5 - 6 a.m.) is probably better if the freezing level results in hard snow conditions on the ascent. Have a great time!

 

[John Christiana]

I've done Shasta twice. It is all relative. The first time, I was less experienced and thought it was a hard climb. Well, we did experience high winds, The second time it was a training hike for me, I was more experienced, and well, it was the second time, so it seemed so much easier.

Both times, we planned it as a 2 day hike, going up the gulch. We started at Bunny Flat, which is 7,000 feet. Last time we camped at Helen Lake, it was pretty crowded, but no big. We carried a light tent to there and then that made for a nice summit day.

Whatever you do, do not underestimate Shasta. Check with the ranger on the current conditions.

I suppose you can get by with hiking boots, but I might go back this summer, and I'll wear my plastic boots.

John

 

[Kevin Rooney]

I just came down off Shasta (06/06/06), with 8 of 9 summiting. Snow from top->bottom. Very wintery conditions still (high snow year), with lots of rime ice falling as an added risk in the wee hours. Will post a trip report, maybe tomorrow with a few pics.