Why did two ill-prepared men try to scale Mount Shasta’s steep north face?
According to emergency workers, the two men had been climbing Mount Shasta for nearly a week and were found by search and rescue teams on Monday, June 24, dehydrated, exhausted and hungry.
Officials with the Mount Shasta Avalanche Center and the California Highway Patrol said the two hikers, who were not named, said they wanted to ascend the mountain’s north face, the steepest and most difficult route, in search of spiritual enlightenment.
The two men – one in his 70s and the other in his 20s from Southern California – told rescuers they met on Mount Shasta just before setting off on the climb on June 19.
Avalanche Center Director and Chief Avalanche Forecaster Nick Myers said his team helps rescue hikers on Mount Shasta every year, but this one was “kind of unusual” because the hikers had been on the mountain for six days.
On the third day, the two hikers shared an apple, but went without food or water for the final three days of the trip, said Steve Weyand, a helicopter pilot with California Hype Parade’s Northern District Air Operations Division in Redding.
Difficult rescue on summit of Mt. Shasta turns into two rescues
The California Highway Patrol set off on a 25-minute flight to Mount Shasta around 8 a.m. after the Siskiyo County Sheriff’s Office received a report that a young man had been trapped on the mountaintop for at least 24 hours.
“They started out at Northgate and were taking the Hot Lamb Glacier route,” Weyand said. The avalanche center said the route remains covered in snow until June or July and that the difficulty increases with altitude, so climbers are advised to plan for a two-day climb.
The peak sits at 13,600 feet above sea level, about 560 feet lower than what the USGS considers to be the highest point, according to Amber Oley, police services manager for the Mount Shasta Police Department.
The thin air at that altitude contains about 12.5 percent oxygen, compared with about 18 percent in the town of Mount Shasta, which is about 3,500 feet above sea level. Lack of oxygen can increase heart rate, quicken breathing and thicken blood, causing drowsiness and disorientation, according to the Wilderness Safety Center.
“They had taken a long time to get there” and were ill-prepared for the hike, Weyand said.
Rescuers found the man, from Southern California, at the summit, out of food, dehydrated and sunburned but uninjured and “awake and alert,” Weyand said.
Read more: California weather not kind to Mount Shasta’s glaciers. Will they survive?
Rescuers said the man’s clothing was not suitable for the extreme cold of the climb – the young climber was wearing jeans, leather boots and a camouflage cotton jacket, making it difficult for rescuers to find him.
The man said he had created a “rock shelter” to protect himself from the elements during the climb, Weyand said, and asked the California Highway Patrol to investigate the whereabouts of his fellow climbers, who had not previously been reported missing.
Weyand said the first climber said he last saw his friend while taking a break on a plateau known as “The Step,” at an elevation of 12,500 feet.
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Finding the elderly climber was even more difficult for rescuers, Weyand said, because he was motionless and “wearing a white sweatshirt that looked like a rock in the snow.”
Rescuers said the elderly climber was thought to have been dead but woke up as rescuers approached.
“He was conscious but not in good shape. The older man weighed about 250 pounds” and was not in good physical condition for a climber, Weyand said.
The CHP transported both climbers to Mercy Medical Center in Mount Shasta. The older man was treated by doctors and flew back to Redding around 11 a.m. on June 24, according to the CHP.
Weather conditions allowed the CHP to land on the summit of Mount Shasta.
Landing a helicopter on the summit is no easy task, even in good weather. High winds and winter weather can batter Mount Shasta’s summit. Weyand said the weather was fortunate for the team on June 24.
Still, the California Highway Patrol had to make the helicopter “as light as possible,” Weyand said. “To fly that high, you have to remove almost all the medical equipment. The helicopter only has one seat for the pilot,” so rescued people are strapped to the floor of the aircraft.
Still, he said it would have been “difficult” to get it off the ground with the two climbers and rescue workers on board.
More: Santa Clara County man was where he wanted to be most when he died on Mount Shasta: his family
While experienced climbers are usually fit and know how to plan and what to bring, beginners may not realize how tough the trails really are. “People who climb for spiritual reasons tend to be the least prepared for mountain conditions,” Weyand said.
Four people have died and 16 have been rescued off Mount Shasta in 2022 and 2023, according to the avalanche center.
Few of the thousands of tourists who visit the mountains need help, but most injuries come from slipping on unstable rocks or in the snow. Emergency workers say other problems can occur if people are not prepared for bad weather, delays or properly dressed.
Weyand says that even if you’re at a low altitude and near a populated area, you should wear light-colored clothing and avoid earth tones, whites and grays that blend in with the background, and that people in distress should move around to make it easier for rescuers to see them.
Jessica Scropani is a features reporter for the Record Searchlight/USA Today Network. She covers science, arts, social issues and news stories. Follow her on Twitter.Follow You can also find us on Facebook. Join Jessica in the Get Out! Nor Cal Recreation Facebook Group. To support and continue this work, please subscribe today. Thank you!
