california — CALIFORNIA

GETTING THERE //

After a couple of days on Highway 1 exploring the Redwoods and the coastal towns, we decided to head east towards Mt. Shasta. We came across Heart Lake Trail online and knew it would be worth the 4 hour drive through the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. Despite it being a national forest I was a little shocked that we couldn't find anything along the way that was of much interest. We were concerned about there still being snow on the mountain, so before hitting the road, I called the local ranger station to ask about local conditions. I mentioned the trail we had in mind and the ranger said the trail was open but unmarked due to there being 8 feet of snow. She suggested renting snow shoes at the local rental shop, The Fifth Season.

We arrived in Mt. Shasta and went straight to the rental shop. After speaking to a helpful employee, we decided to start the Heart Lake Trail early the following morning. So to fill our evening plans, we drove up the main road to Mt. Shasta until we literally couldn't go any further due to the snow. When we got out of the car, it was pretty funny. The snow was so high the road signs were just peeking out.

FIRST TIME TESTING OUT SNOW SHOES //

We piled on the layers and packed up for our hike to Panther Meadow. It was about 20 degrees, which is much colder than our typical hiking weather. I knew I didn't want to get stuck without enough layers, so I layered on two pairs of pants, two pairs of socks and probably six different tops including my jacket.

We really didn't know how far we had to go (because the signs were under the snow) but we estimated a couple of miles there and back. We didn't hike a trail; we just followed the road uphill to the meadow. Within the first couple of minutes, I fell trying to get up the 8 feet of snow. Once up there we set out and quickly realized we had on way too many layers. Each time we'd stop, I'd have to take off another layer. The guys laughed at me. Now I know. We passed a couple of people sledding at the base of the parking lot then didn't see anyone until we arrived back just before sunset.

I felt comfortable in the snow shoes, but after about an hour I had some pain in my hips and lower back. Because I'm on the short side (5 feet), I realized I had to keep my snowshoes further apart, so they didn't rub which caused me to walk in a wider stance. I tried to get into a rhythm and used my poles to help take some of the pressure off my hips. I knew I'd be sore the next day but I'm really happy we had the chance to get the hang of them before we set off straight up the side of a mountain.

At the end of our hike we caught a beautiful sunset as we made our way back to the car. The mountains in the distance were so blue and the orange light leaked in through the trees, what a perfect ending to the day.

We packed up the car and headed back into town. The restaurant options were pretty limited. We ended up at Copper's Bar & Grill which is located in the Best Western. I know what you're thinking, it sounds strange, but we were all pretty impressed with our meals and the beer selections on tap. I had the chicken burger with avocado, bacon and sweet potato fries.The atmosphere was casual and cozy, like a true mountain lodge so it felt appropriate (especially when we still wearing our hiking boots).

I wish we would have had another couple of days exploring Mt. Shasta. We only got to spend about 24 hours there. The next morning we woke early and hiked the Heart Lake Trail (click for link to post). After that we grabbed brunch at Lily's and then hiked the Castle Dome Trail that afternoon.

WHAT I WISH I WOULD HAVE KNOWN //

Stay longer. 24 hours just wasn't enough time to explore the area. We could have easily spent four or five days there. Due to time restraints, we were forced to skip Lassen Volcanic National Park that seemed pretty awesome. Initially, Coty's work took us to California this trip, but if I were to plan to revisit these areas of northern California, I'd probably wait until the snow melted a bit more to make things easier. Even though it was the beginning of April, some areas were closed or couldn't be accessed due to the snow.