Three Days on Shasta: A Trip Report From The Season That Almost Didn’t Happen
Mount Shasta is hands down one of my favorite mountains. It's a fun peak on which to guide climbers and skiers. I've been working on the mountain with Shasta Mountain Guides since 2005.
Very early in the spring of 2022, I was disappointed when I realized that the mountain was lacking in snow. The outlook was grim when the mountain was dry up to 9000 feet by March.
Many people considered postponing their Shasta plans for another season. The crew in the SMG offices started to consider canceling even more trips. Yet, in April, a series of cold and very wet storms pummeled the mountain. Inches became feet in a matter of days, and boom, our ski mountaineering season was on! It would be a short season, but I was lucky to guide a few early trips.
Day 1: Gear Check, Camp Set-up, Ski Tour
My first trip of the season started at the SMG downtown office with a morning guide meeting. I had the pleasure of seeing old friends and meeting John Michael, who I'd be working with during the trip. John Michael is a rock and ski guide based in Wyoming. We discussed the weather forecast, current conditions, and a general plan.
The weather was forecast to be dynamic. Stormy weather would continue, and it looked like we could get several inches of new snow over the next few days. Along with high winds and cold temps, that would make the trip more challenging. I was happy to be working with John Michael. He's hard-working and laid back. These are great qualities in any mountain partner or work colleague.
We then met six friends from Southern California who we'd be guiding on a three-day ski mountaineering trip. After getting acquainted, we showed them through the gear check. These guys were strong, so they had no trouble packing their and extra group gear. Our packs weighed 40-45 pounds.
Everyone was aware that we were starting our trip during unsettled weather. We were still optimistic about climbing and skiing the mountain.
We drove up to the trailhead at Bunny Flat (6950'), where our climb would begin. We carried our skis and hiked for about 10 minutes before getting to the snow line. We could skin to Horse Camp when we got to continuous snow (7880').
Horse Camp is a section on Mount Shasta owned and cared for by the Sierra Club Foundation. 2022 is the 100th anniversary of the stone lodge there.
Horse Camp is an excellent place for a ski camp if you're on the south side of the mountain. We were happy to find the spring running, and the solar composting toilet open! Thank you, Sierra Club Foundation.
We planned to ski tour and practice skills on the lower mountain (up to about 10,000') for the first two days. Our third day would be our climb day. Our strategy would maximize good skiing and fun on the mountain. It also aligned well with the forecast because day 3 looked like the best weather.
After setting up camp, we went for a short ski tour up the right side of Avalanche Gulch. We skinned up to about 9300' before ripping skins and dropping in. The snow was a little variable but good—a few inches of fresh snow over a (mostly) supportable melt-freeze crust.
Over dinner, we made a plan to tour lower Casaval Ridge the following day. This terrain would give John Michael and me the chance to teach the team skills needed to climb. It would also set us up for good turns that afternoon.
Day 2: Skills Training & Ski Tour
We woke up to a few more inches of new snow in the morning. After breakfast, we packed up and dressed as if we would climb. Equipment management is an important skill to train with practice.
We skinned out of horse camp and climbed to the base of Casaval Ridge. We used a combination of climbing skins and ski crampons to ascend a somewhat steep gully.
We had a great tour up to an elevation of almost 10,000 feet. All the recent snow had improved conditions on Casaval Ridge.
John Michael did a fantastic job teaching the crew a "snow school" on the mountain. He covered skills including climbing techniques, using crampons and an ice ax, and self-arrest.
The weather was cool and windy, with brief periods of snow and whiteout conditions. It was partly sunny at times. Far from perfect, but not terrible.
Around 1 pm, we decided it was time to drop in. We descended into Avalanche Gulch on a steep southeast-facing slope.
Even though the weather wasn't great, the sun's energy had softened the snow enough for some fun turns. We skied the 800-foot shot one at the time to a flat moraine top at around 9,000 feet.
Everyone skied well and was getting excited for our climb the next day. We all were hoping the weather would cooperate.
We skied back to Horse Camp for relaxation before an early dinner. Everyone prepared their gear for the following day. John Michael and I had a thorough conversation about our strategies for the climb. We considered the current conditions and checked an updated weather forecast.
Current snow conditions weren't so bad. We observed no avalanche hazards. The surfaces of our climbing and skiing routes appeared smooth. If it were to be warm and sunny, the conditions would be excellent.
However, the updated weather forecast wasn't ideal for climbing the upper mountain—extreme wind and another storm cycle in the afternoon.
This forecast would mean that, at best, we'd have a very narrow window to climb and ski the mountain safely. We'd want to start early to avoid the threat of afternoon storms. But we'd also like to push our ski descent as late as possible to give the snow time to soften.
Intense wind high on the mountain keeps the snow firm and icy. Safe climbing and skiing on the upper mountain would depend on much calmer wind than was predicted. The wind would be the wild card. We stayed optimistic and hoped that it wouldn't be that bad.
We decided to start at 0300. Not too early and not too late. This start time would put us somewhere between 10,000-11,000 feet right after sunrise. This elevation is an excellent position when a legitimate summit push is questionable. We'd be able to wait out the weather for a little while in relative safety.
Over dinner, we discussed the plan and our strategies with the rest of the team. After dinner, I packed my backpack for the next day, crawled into my tent, then zipped myself into my sleeping bag.
Day 3: Summit Attempt & Big Mountain Ski Run
We woke at 0200 to clear cold skies. It was a beautiful and dark morning. After a light breakfast of coffee, tea, and oatmeal, the 8 of us left camp on skins at 0320. We hoped that the weather would be good enough for an honest summit attempt.
Our pace was slow and steady. We'd skin for an hour, then take a quick break for food and water. By 0730, we'd transitioned to boot crampons and would soon be above 11,000 feet. It was here when the forecast for high wind came to fruition.
Cold 40+ mph wind gusts were beginning to push us around as we climbed. Skis strapped on the outside of our backpacks would catch the wind, which now threatened to knock us down. These conditions slowed our travel.
Unsure about the possibility of summiting, we decided to pause at a flat on the top of a steep hill above Helen Lake. Many call this feature "Olberman's." It's a nice spot to break before climbing the most vertical sections of Avalanche Gulch.
"The Olberman" is considered a rock glacier. The name is in honor of Mac Olberman, who was the first to notice the presence of ice in 1924. Olberman Glacier is small, and all the ice lies under a layer of rocks. There are no crevasses, and there's very little activity. It's hard for some to call this buried mass of ancient ice a glacier. Covered in snow, it looks like another hill on the side of a big mountain.
There are a few hazards with waiting out lousy weather up on Olberman Glacier. Rockfall, icefall, avalanches, and exposure to the weather all can make the place dangerous at times. The Olberman sits underneath steep couloirs and a giant alpine bowl. Loose rock, ice, and unstable snow can threaten climbers who choose the wrong spot to rest.
We placed ourselves in the safest available area. It was a windy morning, so we used our shovels to dig in and build a three-sided wind wall. We could then hunker down long enough to decide if we would climb any further.
We could observe extreme wind and blowing snow above us on the upper mountain. It became apparent that today was not a good day to climb and ski Mount Shasta.
After about 15 minutes, every climbing party above was descending. After 30 minutes, all those climbers were below us.
We needed to make a decision. It became more evident that safety would be marginal in these conditions on the upper mountain. The wind was now strong enough to knock a person down. The snow on the upper mountain would be very firm. Any skiing up there would involve a very high-risk factor.
We decided not to climb any further. Our attention shifted from the summit to where and when we would find the best skiing. We didn't climb above 11,200,' but we were about to ski 4,000 vertical feet!
It was cold and windy, but we still hoped the snow on the steep southeast side of Casaval Ridge would soften. Casaval Ridge separates Avalanche Gulch and Cascade Gulch. The slopes above Avalanche Gulch are the first to soften and usually provide the best ski conditions.
We moved over to a safe spot in one of Casaval's "windows" at 11.200' with that in mind. The windows on Casaval are prominent openings in the ridge. These windows permit climbers to view and climb onto the Cascade Gulch or Avalanche Gulch sides of Casaval.
Our window sat above a steep sunny slope about 800 feet above Helen Lake. The snow was smooth, and the sun was out. A cold wind was still blowing across the slope, and we wondered if the snow would soften enough for easy turns.
We waited until 1100; then, all got a little restless. You can't wait forever, so we made the call to ski. We slowly transitioned to milk every minute of sunshine on our slope.
I dropped in first and committed to whatever snow conditions were below me. Very firm, damn. Oh well, this is common for ski mountaineering. I enjoy skiing in challenging conditions when the risk exposure is tolerable.
In this case, everyone on our team was a very strong and experienced skier. Each person had experience skiing firm snow and the ability to manage a fall if one were to occur. There were no cliffs or crevasses below us, and one could see the entire run from top to bottom. We skied one at a time to reduce risk.
The snow was hard for that first 800 feet. You could hear our turns from a mile away. It was more of a type II fun adventure, meaning more fun when it's over.
Below Helen Lake, the snow got good! We skied the terrain on the SE side slope of Casaval Ridge into Avalanche Gulch. It wasn't very windy below 10,500, and our timing was great. It felt good to be on a warm sunny slope and out of the wind. We enjoyed nearly perfect corn skiing for a few thousand feet.
By the time we arrived at Horse Camp, we were stoked and confident that we'd played our best possible hand. No one ended up summiting the mountain that day. Even still, our team had an awesome experience that day.
We had a great trip. Our group of 8 skied about 7500' feet of vertical on Shasta throughout the weekend. We didn't make it to the summit, but we had a great time. That is ski mountaineering for you. Success is never guaranteed and always comes at a price.
I'm grateful that the ski mountaineering season turned on so this trip could happen. Thank you, Shasta Mountain Guides, for the culture and experience. Thank you, John Michael, for being such a solid wingman. Thank you to the rest of the crew for being dependable and fun. We had a great trip, and I hope we can all ski together again!