Old Ski Bowl and Green Butte

Length: 2.6 miles round trip

High Point: 9193 feet

Elevation Gain: 1350 feet

Difficulty: Moderate

When to Hike: early July through October

Controlling Agency: Mount Shasta Ranger Station, Shasta-Trinity National Forest, 204 West Alma, Mount Shasta, CA 96067. (530) 926-4511.

http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/shastatrinity.

Special Features: vigorous climb above tree line on Mount Shasta; volcanic geology; expansive views of regional mountains

Directions to the Trailhead: From the I-5 Central Mount Shasta exit, travel .7 mile east on Lake Street and then follow the curve as the road becomes Everitt Memorial Highway, which runs another 14 miles to the end of the road at the Old Ski Bowl parking lot.

Description and Comments: Start from the northwest side of the parking area near the self-issue permit station. The Old Ski Bowl contains a network of roads and paths. You will follow the largest and most obvious road that heads, for the most part, straight up the mountain.

At .2 mile you’ll see another dirt road heading left. It climbs for .5 mile to a red fir forest and ends at a small valley. Consider adding it to your itinerary after you have summitted Green Butte.

The main road continues upward, passing under the east side of Green Butte and then passing near the remnants of an old ski lift. Just beyond the ski lift you leave the road and make your way cross-country west and then southerly to the top of Green Butte.

The views are well worth the climb. The Trinity Alps rise beyond the Eddy range to the west. Swinging your gaze southwest brings you to Castle Crags with Gray Rocks looming beyond. The Cascades stretch southeast, disappearing under the Sierra Nevada a dozen miles or so beyond Lassen Peak.

Maps: USGS 7.5′ McCloud, USFS Mt. Shasta Wilderness.