Mt. Shasta
| Mount Shasta | |
|---|---|
Aerial view of Mount Shasta from the west
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| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 14,179 ft (4,322 m) NAVD88 |
| Prominence | 9,772 ft (2,979 m) |
| Isolation | 335 mi (539 km) |
| Parent peak | North Palisade |
| Listing | |
| Coordinates | 41°24′33″N 122°11′42″W / 41.409196033°N 122.194888358°WCoordinates: 41°24′33″N 122°11′42″W / 41.409196033°N 122.194888358°W |
| Geography | |
| Location | Siskiyou County, California, U.S. |
| Parent range | Cascade Range |
| Topo map | USGS Mount Shasta |
| Geology | |
| Age of rock | About 593,000 years |
| Mountain type | Stratovolcano |
| Volcanic arc | Cascade Volcanic Arc |
| Last eruption | 1786 |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | 1854 by E. D. Pearce and party |
| Easiest route | Avalanche Gulch ("John Muir") route: talus/snow climb |
| Designated | 1976 |
Mount Shasta (Karuk: Úytaahkoo or "White Mountain") is a potentially active volcano at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California. At an elevation of 14,179 feet (4321.8 m), it is the second highest peak in the Cascades and the fifth highest in California. Mount Shasta has an estimated volume of 85 cubic miles (350 km3), which makes it the most voluminous stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc.
The mountain and its surrounding area are managed by the U.S. Forest Service as part of the Shasta–Trinity National Forest.
Mount Shasta is connected to nearby Shastina, and they dominate the northern California landscape. It rises abruptly and stands nearly 10,000 ft (3,000 m) above the surrounding terrain. On a clear winter day, snowy Mount Shasta can be seen from the floor of the Central Valley 140 miles (230 km) to the south. The mountain has attracted the attention of poets, authors, and presidents.
The mountain consists of four overlapping volcanic cones that have built a complex shape, including the main summit and the prominent satellite cone of 12,330 ft (3,760 m) Shastina, which has a visibly conical form. If Shastina were a separate mountain, it would rank as the fourth-highest peak of the Cascade Range (after Mount Rainier, Rainier's Liberty Cap, and Mount Shasta itself).
Mount Shasta's surface is relatively free of deep glacial erosion except, paradoxically, for its south side where Sargents Ridge runs parallel to the U-shaped Avalanche Gulch. This is the largest glacial valley on the volcano, although it does not now have a glacier in it. There are seven named glaciers on Mount Shasta, with the four largest (Whitney, Bolam, Hotlum, and Wintun) radiating down from high on the main summit cone to below 10,000 ft (3,000 m) primarily on the north and east sides. The Whitney Glacier is the longest, and the Hotlum is the most voluminous glacier in the state of California. Three of the smaller named glaciers occupy cirques near and above 11,000 ft (3,400 m) on the south and southeast sides, including the Watkins, Konwakiton, and Mud Creek glaciers.
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Wikipedia