Day Hikes on Mt. Shasta

Mt. Shasta does not have many marked trails, but some of the more popular day-hikes start from the trailheads. From the Bunny Flat trailhead (6,900), you can hike in any direction you choose. The most popular hike is the trail to Horse Camp. From Horse Camp you can plan your own route either to Hidden Valley (9,200), Helen Lake (10,443), or maybe just a good hike to one of the ridge tops. Another popular hike is on the Everitt Memorial Highway past the locked gate to the luscious upper Panther Meadow, 7,770 feet. From the Meadow you can take the trail leading up to Grey Butte, 8,108 feet, or continue along the road to the old Ski Bowl, 7,800 feet. From the Ski Bowl you have the option of hiking to the alpine South Gate Meadows at 8,000 feet, or to the little summit of Green Butte at 9,193 feet. Also, check the Forest Service Road and Trail Conditions online to be sure the gate beyond Bunny Flat is open. Click here...

There are only a few trails within the Mt. Shasta Wilderness. Most of these trails are old jeep roads that are now closed to vehicle traffic. Day hike options are listed below. Please remember that wilderness permits are required for entering the Wilderness Area and that a Mt. Shasta Summit Pass is required if you plan on climbing above 10,000’.

From the Everitt Memorial Highway

Horse Camp (7,900 feet). From the Sand Flat or Bunny Flat Trailheads, follow the trail to Horse Camp (1.5 miles or 1.7 miles, respectively, one way). The Sierra Club Foundation owns historic Shasta Alpine Lodge at Horse Camp, built in 1923. Visitors are asked to respect this private property and to respect wildlife by not bringing pets. Summer caretakers provide climbing and LEAVE NO TRACE information. Seasonal spring water is available. A small library is located inside the cabin. From Horse Camp, the Olberman Causeway extends another half mile up the gulch. This stone walkway was constructed in the 1920s by Mac Olberman, the first Horse Camp caretaker, out of large boulders in the area.

Panther Meadows (7600 feet). From Bunny Flat, remain on the Everitt memorial Highway for another 1.7 miles to the junction with Panther Meadows Campground. Turn right into the campground, park in the parking area, and walk to the meadow. The Gray Butte Trail crosses the meadow and provides access to the summit of Gray Butte.

Panther Meadow's wildflowers used to flourish until heavy recreational traffic destroyed them over the years. The upper part of Panther Meadows has a particular hardy spring that keeps the ground saturated allowing some of the wildflowers to regain their dominance once again. There are marked trails that lead through the meadows and visitors must not wander off them. These meadows are considered spiritual places and most people go there to meditate or to just sit and relax. For a scenic round trip, start at the Panther Meadow campground and hike to the lower meadow and follow the trail upwards to the upper meadow and back again.

South Gate Meadows, formally called Squaw Valley Meadows: The trail can be reached from the Gray Butte trail at lower Panther Meadow or from the old Ski Bowl parking lot. Starting from the old Ski Bowl you will see a rock-lined trail leading up the right side of the bowl. One of Shasta's most hardy wildflowers, the western anemone, with its six white petals, locally called the Windflower, grows un abundance in the rocks and sand. Follow this trail over the barren rocky landscape for approximately 1 mile until you descend into a valley known as “The South Gate” which is towered by a massive rocky butte known as Red Butte, 8,377 feet. You may lose the trail for a short distance through the sandy flat below Red Butte until you pick it up again at The Gate (refer to a topo map). The Gate, so called because it is a natural passage way between Sargents Ridge and Red Butte. Once you pass through The Gate and drop down the canyon below Sargents Ridge, the landscape gives way to a thick forest of mountain hemlocks and a few Shasta Red firs. Follow the well-marked trail for less than a mile until you hear the sound of some rushing streams at which time you will arrive at the upper Meadow.

Looking above the green luscious Meadow at the Mountain, you will have a fantastic view of Konwakiton Glacier. The upper Meadow and the surrounding ridges are decorated with a variety of Shasta's wildflowers. The very rare wildflower, Wilkin's harebell, with its five petals and violet-colored cups, grows mostly next to the creeks and in the rocky crevices along the edge of the meadow. This particular flower only grows for a couple of months during the frost-free season and it's so delicate that one step along the side of it will kill it forever. The flower was named after Laura Wilksons’, a botanist with the CH Merriam expedition. The upper Meadow and its waters are sometimes disturbed by groups making bathing pools in the creeks. When this happens it backs up the natural flow of water and significantly alters the growth of the wildflowers. The meadows are truly a beautiful place on the Mountain and we all need to treat them as such.

Before you leave the upper Meadow, you may want to take a short side trip to lower Squaw Valley Meadow. There is usually a well-worn foot trail leading south down the canyon from the upper Meadow which follows along the fast moving Squaw Valley Creek. The lower Meadow with its waterlogged ground is situated in a small basin that usually holds pockets of snow up until midsummer. This area is protected from the wind, and on a hot day the humidity seems to rise which makes the Meadow a perfect place for mosquito's breeding.