Mount Shasta Ski Park
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Mount Shasta Ski Park | |
|---|---|
| Location: | Mount Shasta, California |
| Nearest city: | City of Mount Shasta, CA, 12 miles (20 km) west |
| Coordinates: | |
| Vertical: | 1390 ft (424 m) |
| Top elevation: | 6866 ft (2093 m) |
| Base elevation: | 5476 ft (1669 m) |
| Skiable area: | 425 acres (1.7 km²) |
| Runs: | 32 |
| Longest run: | 1.75 miles (2.8 km) |
| Lift system: | 3 triple chairlifts, 1 surface lift |
| Lift capacity: | 6200 skiers/hr |
| Snowfall: | 23 ft (7 m) |
| Snowmaking: | Yes, 277 acres (65%) |
| Night skiing: | Yes, 14 trails, 3 lifts |
| Web site: | http://www.skipark.com |
Mount Shasta Ski Park is a ski resort located in northern California, just east of Interstate 5 along SR 89 between the city of Mount Shasta and the town of McCloud. The ski area lies about 6 miles (10 km) south of the summit of 14162 ft (4317 m) Mount Shasta, the second highest volcano in the Cascade Range. It straddles several small volcanic buttes on the lower southern flanks of the massive stratovolcano, with chairlifts running to the top of Coyote Butte (6866 ft / 2093 m), Douglas Butte (6567 ft / 2001 m), and Marmot Ridge (6150 ft / 1875 m). The total skiable vertical is 1390 ft (424 m), with 20% of the terrain rated beginner, 55% intermediate, and 25% advanced.
The Ski Park was the second ski area constructed on Mount Shasta, but the only one which now survives. The old Mount Shasta Ski Bowl had been built in 1958 in a huge open bowl much higher up on the southern flank of the volcano, with a lodge at 7800 ft (2380 m) and lifts topping out above timberline at 9200 ft (2800 m). However, the ski area had often been in financial trouble over the next two decades, and a massive avalanche in January 1978 which destroyed the main chairlift was the finishing blow. The Ski Bowl closed permanently after that, and there was no more lift-served skiing on Mount Shasta until 1985, when local businessmen and developers finally began construction of a new ski area lower down on the mountain, in an area well below timberline and safe from avalanches. The Mount Shasta Ski Park opened on December 14, 1985, and has been successfully operating for over two decades since then. The ski area is located entirely on a single section (1 square mile / 2.59 km²) inholding of private land within the checkerboard pattern of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, and road access is via Forest Route 88 across national forest land.
[edit] External links
- Mount Shasta Ski Park official site
- Mount Shasta Recreational Forecast (National Weather Service)
- Mount Shasta Avalanche Center (USDA Forest Service)
- Skiing on Mount Shasta from the Mount Shasta Companion, College of the Siskiyous
- Ski Lifts.org photos of lifts at Mount Shasta Ski Park
- Terraserver topo map & aerial photo
- Shasta-Trinity National Forest official website
