As we passed the vernal equinox, the days have been longer, the temps more mild and the mountain glowing under the rising California sun.  As a dedicated climber and skier I could not resist the call and found myself on the summit this weekend.  I enjoyed excellent climbing conditions on a smooth wind buffed snow surface.  As we have not received much new snow lately, the avalanche hazard was mostly low, but it still required thoughtful route finding.  The wind was light and the summit was an enjoyable 15 degrees with a cool breeze which I enjoyed all to myself.  I strapped on my skis and enjoyed a fabulous descent which was nice consolodated powder up high and perfect ripened corn down low.  It was as good as it gets for an early spring ascent!  That said, although the calendar says spring we will still get a good dose of winter before we are done.  It is back snowing on the mountain as I type and it looks to be wet the rest of the week.  We like this time of year, you never know what to expect!  Enjoy!

Shasta summit 3.22.08