While trudging under the beating sun on Hat Creek Rim I got my first look at 14,000 foot Mount Shasta peeking its snowy head above the northern horizon. Today (and for the next two weeks) the mountain would dominate the skyline as the trail made a large circle around it on the way to Oregon. After Lassen, Shasta is the next volcano in the Cascade Range, a sign that I had finally left the Sierras and was heading into unfamiliar territory.
I hiked all day with Vick and Ronan through low pine forests and dense scrubland, often crossing one of the many dirt roads which wind their way among the northern California hills. We camped at a remote road junction leading down to a small creek, and as I labored to set up my tent on the rocky ground I felt jealous of Vick’s comfortable-looking hammock hanging in the nearby trees. We cooked our separate meals (I had a simple but effective bowl of ramen) and ate together, telling jokes and stories as the day’s light waned and stars filled the sky.
Russell on the Road 