Saint Helens vs Shasta

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Enabreu
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Saint Helens vs Shasta

Post by Enabreu »

I’m curious if anyone has done both, with snow, that could give me an idea of how they compare. Just climbed Saint Helens, so I got a taste of how long and steep that last mile is. Elevation aside, I’m curious to know how it compares to the section on Shasta before the Red Banks. Is the incline and difficulty pretty comparable, or is one much steeper than the other?
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Wildernessjane
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Re: Saint Helens vs Shasta

Post by Wildernessjane »

Assuming you were on the Worm Flow route of MSH, I don’t think there is a drastic difference in steepness. Route descriptions for Avalanche Gulch list the steepness at 30-35 degrees and I think the Worm Flows is described as up to 30 degrees. That said, the section before the Red Banks on Shasta was pretty icy when we did it (late May) and we used crampons and ice axes. We only used Microspikes on MSH. I thought the sketchiest part of MSH was making our way over to the summit proper and back, which not a lot of other groups seemed to be doing when we were there.
“Climb mountains not so the world can see you, but so you can see the world.” -David McCullough?
Enabreu
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Re: Saint Helens vs Shasta

Post by Enabreu »

Awesome, thank you! :-D