Flutterby™! : into the north country

Charlene and I spent the weekend up around Dunsmuir and Mount Shasta, in northern California. First stop was Mossbrae Falls, a mile or so of walking north along the railroad tracks from Dunsmuir. The falls extend for a couple of hundred feet along the side of the river, and, except that it's a very popular destination, are a great place to hang out and enjoy the sound and the sunlight.

We made a quick stop in the city of Mount Shasta for supplies, were reminded of why neither of us is keen on the vibe there, then went up to Castle Lake to camp overnight. Saw some cool gull-like birds which soared and chirped. Can't find 'em yet in the reference books, the closest thing we've found is listed in the "rarely seen only in truly remote places in the Trinity range", which we don't think this was. Next morning we took the Maxima down a fire road, and hiked out to a promontory overlooking an incredible gorge, which opened up towards Mount Shasta. Spent a few hours soaking up the vibes, watching the Turkey Vultures soar the thermals in the down the wooded slopes and below the rocky cliffs, with the roar of the water echoing up.

(Apologies for the exposure, this needs to be stitched and processed into a panorama.) In all, logged more double-dash road in the Maxima than most SUVs see in their lifetime, did some good hiking, saw some incredible scenery, and got a good shakeout on camping gear I haven't really used in a few years. I'm starting to resent Burning Man 'cause I've got stuff to fill my weekends, stuff other than hanging out on a mountain top.

My previous notes on Shasta have some older photos.