I’ve never spent much time in the more northern parts of California, save for a flop of a summit attempt and a few days in Lassen Volcanic National Park. It’s only 4.5-5 hours away, nearly the same amount to drive to Yosemite Valley, Tuolumne Meadows or Mammoth. Over the Martin Luther King weekend, I tried to rectify this with a trip to Mount Shasta, both a city and a breathtaking, mystical mountain.
Let me tell ya something about me. I don’t like breaking the rules… much. There’s something about it that just gives me the heebie jeebies, like I’m going to get caught and be punished to the full extent of the law and I’ll rot in jail forever or something. I know, I know, it’s a bit extreme. That’s how I felt about hiking Mossbrae Falls.
I reached out to a few friends on things to do in the Mount Shasta area. The one thing everyone suggested was the McCloud Falls trail.
The McCloud Falls trail is an easily accessible, family friendly hike. Out and back, the trail is about 3.5 miles long with a little over two hundred feet of elevation gain. The trail visits three tiers of waterfalls on the McCloud River.
Photos by Peter Amend
I will always take dirt trails over concrete sidewalks and the mountains over the city. There are just some times that you can’t escape that hustle and bustle.
Hiking the original Seven Summits of San Francisco is an idea I’ve had in my pocket for a while. I mentioned the idea to my friend, Peter, and he rallied together a group to tackle hiking across San Francisco.
Estimated walking distance for hiking San Francisco? 18 miles.
This winter was a Sierra snow year for the books. I’ve lived in California all my life but don’t remember a winter where it rained for three months straight. All the snow meant my Sierra objectives were looking a little bleak and buried. I brushed up on my map and compass skills with REI and hit the trail in Mokelumne Wilderness at the beginning of June. My destination was a place I’ve never been: Fourth of July Lake in the Carson Pass Management Area.
