Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board The Perfect Storm on Shasta

last saturday i caught part of the movie the perfect storm. i thought to myself is this an omen for my upcoming trip to shasta. probably yes.
tuesday morning i set out for the peak of shasta. i started out from 4400 ft. and made it to about 11500 ft. i was in white out conditions, 60 mph wind gusts and sub freezing tempatures. my hands freezing up a couple of times, several self arrests, and snow crystals freezing my eyes. it was the perfect storm. in a moment of sanity. the thoughts of dieing up top, and wanting to see my friends again brought me to my senses. i turned it around and made my way down. instead of calamity because of summit fever, i'll take it away as a learning experience and a wonderful day hike. As i was driving home the climbers montra rung through my head " Getting Down is Mandatory." Getting down is madatory was the lesson to be learned that day. And sometimes its the processes not the peak that counts.

"Testing one's limits may create a risk factor but it is the only way to find out what you are truly capable of." mc reinhardt

Remind me next Spring that we're going to do Shasta together.

Story lifted from:
http://www.hikerhell.com/

Man stranded on Mt. Shasta after 2,000-foot fall
By Record Searchlight staff
Posted November 2, 2009 at midnight
A 43-year-old Santa Rosa man spent the night on Mt. Shasta after he was seriously injured from a fall that shattered his helmet, the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Department reported Sunday.

Julian Lopez and a friend left their camp at Lake Helen to climb the 14,162-foot mountain at 5 p.m. Saturday.

They followed the Avalanche Gulch route and reached the Red Banks area around 10 p.m., when Lopez slipped and fell about 2,000 feet. The fall broke his climbing helmet and Lopez reported that he had a serious hip injury and could not move his legs, sheriff's department spokeswoman Susan Gravenkamp said.

Lopez used his cell phone to call for help, but the phone lost power after several calls.

The men spent the night on a rocky outcropping and were found Sunday morning by a ground crew made up of five Sheriff's Department volunteer search-and-rescue personnel and a U.S. Forest Service ranger.

A California Highway Patrol helicopter took Lopez to the Bunny Flat area, where he was transferred to Mercy Medical Center in Redding, Gravenkamp said.

Lopez was not listed as a patient at Mercy on Sunday night, a nursing supervisor said.

The men said they had climbed Mt. Shasta before, Gravenkamp said.


http://www.redding.com/news/2009/nov/02/man-stranded-on-mt-shasta-after-2000-foot-fall/

That fellow was very fortunate to survive a fall of that distance. Last year a woman was killed in about the same area - late November, IIRC.

The Climbing Advisory states "The best time to climb Mt. Shasta is generally from late May to mid July on the SW side of the mountain when summer days are longer and the weather is generally stable."

Personally, I love the AV Gulch route, and don't climb it unless there's substantial snow cover below, thru and above Red Banks, as well as waiting until the snow is well-consolidated.

But, that's just me.

not at all unusual for Shasta from now until mid-april. I am batting less than .500 for my dozen winter attempts on Shasta. Hopefully you were on Sargents or Green ridge or the other side and not the AV Gulch route, or maybe too little snow to worry about or it was well consolidated...?

Glad you made the right decision. It is usually a hard one.

Kevin R. my answer to climbing advisory is: A mountain can be climbed at any time.
Mellville, way to go on the .500 average.when is the next time you are going?
there was lots of snow and a 35 degree ice walkway at times.
it was av gulch.
the decision to come down was easy.It was my best non peak day.

True, however on my very first mid-winter trip, I remember a great quote by the much more experienced climber, who had caught and passed us from below on a day hike (he was training for Denali later that season), when in the middle of a moist, windy, white-out, at the Thumb, he pronounced "this mountain doesn't want to be climbed today"... we all trusted his judgement, and proceeded to follow him on the fastest glisade I have ever done...


April 13, 2010. Must wait until after Tyndall in early March.


good. Ice much better than unconsolidated snow. Still a good decision though, live to fight another day.

thanks melville for the input. i just learned that lesson, that you learned from the experienced climber. had i stayed at home and been a couch potatoe i would not have gained that experience.
kevin r thanks for the original input. i used the shasta avalanche center website to link me to the noaa weather, which gave me the nasty forecast a head of time. i knew what i was getting into. i was looking for trouble, and i found it on shasta.

Well......I'd rather find it when I'm looking for it than find it when I'm not!

Glad to hear you made it back down ok. Let me know when you plan on going back up. This is your last 14er to climb, correct?

hey giga, shasta was fun, but not as good as you, wes, and i on the knife edge ridge of polemonium.
shasta is the missing piece of the puzzle. i have done all the other cal 14 ers.
i will let you know when i decide to do shasta again.
it would also be good if you richard and i could do a dayhike in december.
congrats on whitney summit.

Sounds like a good climb. Wait until there's enough snow on the mountain and climb Casaval Ridge. It is tons of fun.

We don't have anything planned for Thankgiving weekend yet. Mike was asking about that on Saturday.

I've got a new pair of Nuptse boots that seem really, really warm and comfortable...

Hey Richard,

Souloscrambler and I will be in Mexico climbing Orizaba over thanksgiving--yeah!!!!!

So how does one procure an invitation? Or is this an exclusive expedition?

NO NO --not exclusive at all. Wish we knew you wanted to go. We began our planning several months ago. Two of my other friends are also going to be with us.

My next big adventure is Rainer in July and Bolivia/Ecuador in August.....and of course I have to go back and climb Shasta again for "you know who"

I once left for Nepal on about three days notice... Didn't come home until about two months later...

Mexico ain't that far away... If more can be added, send me an e-mail with details.

ditto, I just got laid off the day I returned from the group hike on Thor. I'm avail...

Richard and Melville1955,

Okay where were you guys when I was desperately looking for people to go on the trip??? ...Only kidding....but seriously I already have organized all the logistics for 4 people, so plane flights, transportation etc has already been pre-scheduled.

Here is our itinerary in case you are able to meet-up on the mountain:

Sun 22: Arrive early am in Mexico City and head to Tlachichuca with lodging for the night

Mon 23: Travel to Hut on Pico de Orizaba--acclimate Mon/Tues

Wed 25: Summit bid or .....

Thurs 26: Alternate summit bid if needed—pick-up at the hut late afternoon to be transported back to Tlachichuca

Fri 27: Back to Mexico City airport

kevin trieu, follow your dream.

melville, i will pm you with my e mail adress. also i have sent richard trip itinerary, so maybe you can talk with him as well.

after the mexico trip does anyone want to climb shasta? YEH!