When you get off of I-5 at Siskiyou Ave in Dunsmuir, there’s a tiny sign announcing the presence of Hedge Creek Falls. This sign does not do it justice. This little waterfall is one of the most scenic leg stretchers on this stretch of highway.
Over a three day weekend, I had the chance to head up Siskiyou County, or the area near the behemoth that is Mount Shasta. Our first stop was a 3 mile hike to Heart Lake in Shasta-Trinity National Forest.
The trailhead for Heart Lake begins at Castle Lake, a 7 mile paved drive from the enormous Lake Siskiyou. Don’t laugh at the 1.5 miles to Heart Lake. Sitting at 5,280’, folks coming straight from sea level (like me) might struggle a bit. The elevation gain will get your thighs burning, too.
The trail winds around the east side of Castle Lake. For fun, we hiked the west side until the trail disappeared. We considered bushwhacking up to the cliffs where Heart Lake was but decided it was too miserable. We retraced our steps to the proper beginning of the Heart Lake trail, just past the picnic tables and the boat put-in area.
The actual Heart Lake trail begins by crossing the outlet of Castle Lake. There are some slippery rocks to carefully hop across, or just plunge right through. It then begins to gradually ascend above Castle Lake. Here, the trail mostly compact dirt, with the occasional root or two.
As the Heart Lake trail climbs out of the forest, it becomes more rocky. Watch your step. It will seem like you won’t be able to see Mount Shasta behind a pesky little hill. Keep climbing up north west and you’ll start to see Shasta peak out. The trail becomes a little hard to follow, but keep heading north towards a rocky knoll. The trail descends between the knoll and the cliffs.
Soon, you’ll see Heart Lake, a tiny but impressive lake with magnificent views of Mount Shasta. Few lakes are more stunning. We had hiked up for sunset and wanted to take in more of the mountain.
We crossed Heart Lake, frozen at the time, and continued up the ridgeline up a faint trail until Mount Shasta and all her glory was in sight. If you continue to follow this trail, it will take you to the summit of Castle Peak. We didn’t continue up and backtracked our steps to the car and straight to dinner.
Hiking Heart Lake in January
When we hiked to the lake over the 2018 MLK weekend, California had received little to no rain or snowfall. The trail was relatively clear with a few icy patches near Heart Lake. The lake was completely frozen over.
Normally, the Mount Shasta and Lassen area receives the most snow in all of California. This year, it’s still relatively bare. Please note that these conditions are not normal and should not be expected when you hike Heart Lake in the winter.
This post was created in partnership with Discover Siskiyou. Thank you for hosting us over the long weekend.
So you wanna hike the Laugavegur trail in 2 days? No problem. I did it in August, and it was fantastic.
The Laugavegur trail was The Thing that I wanted to do on my Iceland trip. I saw photos on Outdoor Research earlier this year, and I was sold. The day that I booked my airplane tickets was the day I started booking spots on the Laugavegur trail. I had to do it, no matter what.
As I grow older, I realize that giving presents is something I’ve really grown to dislike. I don’t want to give stuff anymore. We all have too much stuff. My parents have too much stuff. I have too much stuff. Stuff doesn’t last. Stuff breaks. Stuff gets thrown away. Experiences are better.
Get out there and make some unforgettable memories with this list of five awesome Bay Area experiences to gift your friend, your mother, or whomever.
Considering how close I live to Big Sur, I rarely make it out to this gorgeous bit of California coastline. It doesn’t help that most campsites here are booked out months in advance. I got lucky and managed to find an opening at Kirk Creek Campground back in the spring.
I grabbed a few friends and drove south for a relaxing weekend. We had no plans on the horizon, except for maybe hiking Cone Peak.