Places – 7- Mt. Shasta, California

Between the post-election blues and pre-holiday nonsense, the once-brisk blogging pace has slowed. Then I saw a favorite shot that was framed on the wall and thought it was time to recall an adventure from the film days.

In June of 1998, we headed west for another bowling tournament in Reno. We added some days to the trip to drive into northern California. The landscape there is nothing like it is in the arid south. Here, California looks more like Oregon.

Black Butte (1 June 1998)

Extruded at the foot of Mt. Shasta, the lava dome 

was created about 10,000 years ago.

We are at the southern end of the Cascade Volcanic Arc, a string of active volcanos that extend 700 miles north to British Columbia. At over 14,000 feet, Mt. Shasta is the second tallest after Mt. Rainier but it is the biggest in terms of volume. Since it is such a huge presence in the area and an active volcano, the mountain has held spiritual significance for as long as humans have been around it. Modern ‘New Agers’ swarmed the place in 1987 because Mt. Shasta is a global “power center”...a primo, high energy spot to effect the ‘Harmonic Convergence’ that was conducted world-wide that August.

Mt. Shasta, CA (1 June 1998)

We arrived in the afternoon and spent the night, soaking up the aura of the place. With our Ch’i, mojo and Feng Shui all topped off by morning, we headed up the mountain...at least as far as the road would take us. Flatlanders should understand that winter lasts longer at altitude. Going up is the same as going north. Before we even hit the tree line and the tundra zone, the road was dramatically closed because the snow was still too deep to plow...in June...in California.

Mt. Shasta, End of the Line (1 June 1998)

Instead of turning back, we parked and wandered around. Hikers and climbers were camped there and you could see the rest of the mountain looming above the last trees. After driving (slowly and safely) up the mountain for an hour, it was impressive to see how much more mountain there was.

That’s when I took this picture...the money shot of the visit. Put on a wide angle lens or back up (but not too far), and you have just another picture of a snow-capped mountain. But put on the telephoto lens and zoom in on a small portion of that massive slope and you might have something. I really enjoy playing with a zoom lens and a single-lens reflex camera where I can look through the viewfinder and see just what’s being shot. I pan around and zoom in and out until something pleasing like this shows up.

Mt. Shasta Detail (1 June 1998)

The light, the silhouettes of trees, the curves and shades that might suggest other things, the uniform texture of the slope from the wind or skiers, all contribute to the image. I believe it is striking because the upper, background portion of the image, which our minds think should be sky, is not.

Mt. Shasta Detail (1 June 1998)

So, I’m not sure if this is a ‘Tip of the Day’ post – crop and compose with the zoom lens...or a ‘Right Place at the Right Time’ entry because later in the year, the snow would be gone...and earlier, one couldn’t get to this vantage point. Regardless, I am grateful to have been where I was, when I was...with the camera in hand.