Riding the Trails in
Mt. Shasta Forest June 2006

Hello sports fans! The weather is mild, the GPS is programmed and the roads are primed for exploring. Yes, it's that time of year when young boys and girls have one thing on their minds...GETTING THE HELL OUTTA SUBURBIA! Time to head into the backcountry to check out what this grand rock we call earth has to offer. With gear on and a 4 year old in desperate need of a nap, we headed out. Food? Check. Camelbaks? Check. Need to venture forth and explore? Check. Full tank of gas? Man, I hope so! A cell phone that works? Hey, we're traveling with Terry, remember?!?

Now remember, kids, there are bears around. Yes, they do shit in the woods and yes, they are VERY large. Big Pile = Big Ass Bear!

Jack and Terry getting geared up for Jack's first "official" trail ride. This outta be good...


...and this was Jack's seat, wedged between Terry and the tank bag. Jack couldn't have been more pleased with himself.


This was just one of a thousand fire roads that were available for exploring.


And then there was this little, ahem, problem. I swear, this was not my fault!! I was following Jack and Terry down a narrow fire road. Terry stopped to the left on what he now realizes was a sloping hill. Sloping Hill + No Place to Put Your Foot = Timber! I stopped alongside him as he was starting to fall over and became part of the act. Jack was absolutely fine but crying as the whole thing scared him. Poor guy! Let's just say that when it was time to get back on, Jack asked if he could ride with me. Nice one, Terry.


Hey, kids, can you spot the half a lizard? I turned over this rock to build a makeshift tripod when I found the ass end of the little dude. Problem was, couldn't find the front end. Weird.


Just some of the obstacles you encounter on the fire roads.



There was so much snow that we couldn't go any further. Well, we COULD, but not safely and with a kid in tow. But hey, when there's so much snow, what else do you do but...


...but have a snowball fight!


And here comes the madman! Jack totally dug the cool find.


Totally elated!


The road we took in our quest to get as close to Mt. Shasta as possible. Had it not been for the snow, we would've continued.


How could you not enjoy such an awesome day?!?


Or such a cool view?!? Priceless.


Jack loading up for the ride down the mountain.


The soft roll of the engine was enough to lull the big guy off to sleep.



Welcome to Castle Lake, a BEAUTIFUL natural lake that sits about 7 miles up from Highway 5 in the mountains across the freeway from Mt. Shasta. As you can see, there was plenty of snow left to melt into freezing water! "No thanks, honey, you can go for a swim."



YOU try and get an exhausted 4 year old to smile pretty for the camera. Ah, family moments...

The author at beautiful Castle Lake. Totally awesome.