My Visit to Mt. Shasta
In 2021, somehow, I came across “Mt. Shasta” on the internet. Once I fell upon it, I immediately felt called there. I visited various websites about Mt. Shasta, discovering that it is a spiritual mountain. I kept those tabs open on my phone, and did not close them for 3 years. I left them there as reminders of my intention to go there someday, when the timing was right. In 2023, I came across my old tabs on Mt. Shasta and did a little more research and learned that Mt. Shasta is the Root Chakra of the world. If you know me, you know how much I value chakras. Every person has chakras that resonate with them more than others, based on their spiritual journeys. The Root Chakra is a very important chakra for me. Mt. Shasta was calling me even louder.
My husband asked where in the world I wanted him to take me to celebrate my 40th birthday. Mt. Shasta. We needed to go to Mt. Shasta. I didn’t know much about Mt. Shasta at that point, but we booked our stay, following my intuition.
Getting to Mt. Shasta
Mt. Shasta, California is not an easy place to get to from the East Coast. We ended up flying to San Francisco and driving 4 hours north to the town at the base of the mountain, Mount Shasta. On our drive, I spotted the mountain in the distance. We were still an hour and a half away. It’s that big!
The Town of Mount Shasta
Mount Shasta is a super cute and spiritual-oriented town. Since Mt. Shasta (the mountain) is a location for spiritual seekers, the town certainly has that vibe. It has many crystal shops and kombucha on tap at almost every restaurant. I bought a couple books from gift shops about Mt. Shasta UFO sightings, Lemurians living inside the mountain, and other Mt. Shasta folklore. I figured it would all bring our hikes through Mt. Shasta to life. But the truth is that none of that is what was calling me to Mt. Shasta. I couldn’t really explain my interest other than I knew that my experience was for me, based on my energy, and something about my own resonance with the mountain. We had lunch at a cute restaurant and then we checked into our Airbnb which was tucked into the woods. As cozy as our Airbnb was, I needed to get onto Mt. Shasta. She was calling me.
Panther Meadows
Based on some quick guidebook reading, I felt most called to Panther Meadows. It sounded the most sacred. There is a Lower Level and Upper Level, and if you park at the Lower Level you can enjoy that space and walk up to the Upper Level, so that was our plan. We put on our hiking boots and hopped in the truck. The drive up Mt. Shasta is absolutely breathtaking. Bunny Flats is a serene meadow lower on the mountain than Panther Meadows, with plenty of parking and a bathroom. It has a beautiful view of the mountain summit over wildflowers. There is also a bench and cute stone paths. It was lovely. We stopped there and then continued our drive up to Lower Level Panther Meadow (stopping on side of the road whenever we felt called, taking in the beauty of the valley below and the mountain summit above).
Aside from being one of the sacred mountains of the world, and the Root Chakra of the world, Mt. Shasta gets magic from its width. Because of how wide it is, there are meadows on the mountain covered in wildflowers, which is so special. It allows you to have a space to really take in the majestic views.
We arrived to the Lower Level Panther Meadow parking lot and walked to our left up the trail. We stopped to read the “Shasta-Trinity National Forest Sign” which was about taking care of the space. The wildflowers are very delicate and it is important not to step on them. In particular, there was concern about the Heather, which is not only my name, but also a type of flower. A section of the sign said, “What Happens to Heather When it is Trampled?” It was such a synchronicity for me that I was so called to this spot, which also holds so much of the energy of my name. I can tell you from personal experience what happens when Heather is trampled on, so the sign made me laugh. I can even tell you that Heather has been capable of self-trampling.
Photo from Shasta-National Trinity Forest Sign at Lower Panther Meadows, Mt. Shasta, California
But regardless of how much I may have been trampled in my life, there I was, in a sacred place I manifested to visit for my 40th birthday, with the love of my life. This birthday was a big deal for me, because my thirties were not easy. I almost lost everything a few times, had my share of grief, depression, anxiety, and self-loathing. I made mistakes. I overcame traumas and tons of programming. It was truly a transformational time. The potential way I would spend my 40th birthday had a range of possibilities, but there I was… at Mt. Shasta, a dream place for me, living the life of my dreams. We all get trampled on sometimes, but I am proof that if we focus on our healing, we can rise up. Maybe even as high as Mt. Shasta.
We proceeded to follow the narrow path weaving through the Lower Level Panther Meadow and it had such a whimsical fairy vibe. We didn’t step off the path because of all the signage not to. We wanted to respect the sacred space. So we simply strolled through the meadow. We used AllTrails to find a path up to Upper Panther Meadow because we weren’t sure which direction to take to get up there. The trail took us up a band of rocks. It was a very short but rocky hike. It crossed over a creek, which is the McCloud River. It was fun to hop over it and continue the rocky path to Upper Panther Meadow. We saw the meadow, but the trail looped around it, bringing us up to the entrance point.
I have to say, I preferred Upper Panther Meadow. The energy of the space is so magical, whimsical, playful, feminine, serene, and divine. The view of the summit was better than Lower Panther Meadow and there were some spaces to relax and take in the gorgeousness of the experience. When we climbed onto a rock, we both felt an intense energetic experience. Our Root Chakras were becoming balanced and activated by the mountain. There was a deep and wide swirling sensation at the base of both of our bodies. It felt like we were being somehow attuned by the mountain. In all of my travels, I have never felt that sort of energetic shift from a physical space. I sunk into the feeling and took a meditative position. Despite the incredible views, I closed my eyes and experienced balls of purple energy whirling in my hands. The energy of the space was palpable to me; I could hold it. People say that sacred ceremonies have been taking place in this spot by indigenous people for hundreds of years, and I feel like the collective energy of all of the magic that has happened in this space, aggregates and builds onto to the magic, extending and amplifying it. Truly divine. When I travel, I listen to the signs of nature around us, and after a bit, I felt it was time for us to leave. I could have stayed on that rock forever. We continued to walk around the meadow on the path and found what people call the “Mouth of God.” It is water pouring out of the mountain, which is the start of the McCloud River. I put my hands in the water and it felt purifying. We followed the trail back down to Lower Panther Meadow. It was a sacred afternoon.
On a rock, Upper Panther Meadow, Mt. Shasta, California
Old Ski Bowl Trailhead
There were so many ways we could have spent our next day, but I still had a strong calling to go back to the mountain. There was more for me to experience, but I wasn’t sure what. The guidebooks we had highlighted plenty of sights in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest and beyond, even a couple spots on the mountain we hadn’t seen. But that wasn’t it. I knew I had to be on the mountain; but where, wasn’t in the guidebook. We decided to follow our drive back up the mountain passing Bunny Flats, and Panther Meadows, but then continue to drive as far up as we could, and we’d see what was there when we got there.
What we found… was pure magic. I have not been as giddy in my adult life as I was when I discovered Old Ski Bowl Trailhead. I heard a video of a Mt. Shasta tour guide, named Andrew Oser, describe Mt. Shasta as the “Mountain of Happy.” He explained that people are just happy being there. In that moment, I could not agree more. For those of you familiar with my work, I am extremely connected to the concept of the spiral. See my About Us page for why I included it in my logo. In a nutshell, spirals represent the evolution of our human experience and also our connection to the divinity around us. When I walked out of our truck, I laid my eyes on multiple large spirals made out of rocks overlooking the valley and just under the summit. The energy was so divine in this place. The rocks were laid out with such intention and beauty, also framing out flowers. Mt. Shasta is a place of collective magic, and a celebration of the beauty of nature. I spent an incredibly long time just enjoy the spirals, which were on a cliff overlooking a valley. The view and energetic experience of being in that particular spot, was spectacular.
Rock spirals, by parking lot, Old Ski Bowl Trailhead, Mt. Shasta
We finally made our way up the Old Ski Bowl Trailhead. It still had the magic of Upper Panther Meadow, which was amplified because of the indigenous ritual going on in the distance and also a woman playing the shamanic drum. It was rockier. It was a mix of wildflowers and boulders. I found a rock to crawl on and laid there staring at the summit and taking in the sunshine, completely in awe of where I was blessed to be; blessed in physically being in that place at that time on the mountain, but also blessed in my life. So blessed to be living this life aligned with my highest possible timeline, despite all odds. At this point, we were probably above 8,000 feet elevation but we wanted to see how high we could climb before getting too winded. We continued up the rocky path until about 8,500 feet and just took in the magic. Nobody else was around. I did some yoga and ceremoniously connected to the mountain which had called me so loudly for years.
My "close up" with Mt. Shasta at about 8500 feet elevation
The Root Chakra and Mt. Shasta Healing
The Root Chakra has been a major part of my spiritual journey and healing. It has been challenging for me to keep in balance due to the programming I was brought up in, my karma, and ancestral traumas. I was predisposed to experience certain things due to the energetic imprint I was carrying. So for me to stay calm and strong, in my own sense of self, despite what people throw at me, was a big part of my healing journey. To stay rooted in the storm; to have the groundedness to hold onto what is mine. 40 represents a new found stability for me, having done so much healing work in my 30s. Connecting to the Root Chakra of the world, for my 40th birthday was a full circle; a rebirth. I am fully connected, stable, and rooted into my glorious life. Thank you, Mt. Shasta, for helping me to honor my evolution.
If you are working on ancestral healing, overcoming past life karma, healing from current life traumas, or specifically a mother wound, managing any form of anxiety, or simply a person who appreciates the divinity in nature, a visit to Mt. Shasta may benefit your energy system. For me, I now feel a sacred connection with the mountain where I feel held by her, wherever I am. In meditation, I can bring myself back to the energy of being in that physical place and it brings me an incredible sense of calm and gratitude. Our personal root chakra flow is heavily imprinted by our ancestry, karma, and families as infants and children. I think that there is such intensely healing energy around Mt. Shasta (since it is the Root Chakra of the Earth), that it helps us to more easily reprogram our personal root chakras. She has a maternal presence that can help us to feel reborn.
If you are interested in energy healing, I can support you through Reiki or Energy Coaching.
If you have the intuition that past life karma is holding you back, I can help you with an Akashic Record Reading to help you to not only understand you soul more deeply but also overcome the specific karmic themes that are creating barriers. I would love to support you on your healing journey.