Mount Shasta and Zoey's First Lookout Tower

As I carry my second armload of kitty supplies, I wonder if other people who travel with their cat bring this much stuff. Altogether, we've got her food, littler box, scratching post, sleeping cube, and bed.

We want her to be comfortable, especially now that her health is declining. For most cats, traveling is a stressful experience, but we've come to realize that Zoey isn't like most cats.

In the weeks following our trip to Fairbanks, Zoey's weight took a nosedive. She dropped a pound in just two weeks and became even more finicky about her food. We weren't sure whether we'd make this trip at all until the very last minute. We were due to leave on Friday and she hadn't eaten more than a nibble here and there for almost a week. On Thursday afternoon, we had salmon burgers for dinner. When she finally ate a full meal, we packed our bags.

We started planning this trip in March with a reservation to a lookout tower. Then Matt found a race nearby. Suddenly, we had a week's worth of adventures planned in and around the town of Mount Shasta.

McCloud Falls

Spray Tan

Earlier in the summer, I made a friend with former Humboldt runner, Linn. She just happened to live in Mt. Shasta and hooked us up with some really great hikes. We visited waterfalls, did some route finding, and stood atop a dormant volcano. It was pretty amazing.

Black Butte

Mt. Shasta from Black Butte summit

To beat the afternoon wind, Matt and I often left our beds before sunrise, adventured in the morning, napped in the afternoon, and then went for a run in the evening.

That seems to be how we travel. If I'm not careful, Matt has the power to wear me out completely and I only make it through two or three days of activities before I can no longer move without massive amounts of coffee.

Afternoon sieste

It was wonderful to return to a cozy bed every afternoon and doze with Zoey. Most afternoons, she snuggled up in my arms and we fell asleep together. At night, we had dinner together. I was surprised to see how the close quarters and extra attention perked her back up. Just the week before, I was so certain the end was near.

Food with a strong odor sometimes revives her appetite too so we made an extra effort to eat meals with her. It also helped keep costs down and tasted better. All homemade: tomato soup, toast, and pesto. :)

She always beats me.

The perfect, crisp fall weather was excellent for exploring. We even got another dose of fall colors. Unfortunately for me, I had forgotten to pack hiking pants and I spent the week battling twenty degree wind chill in my shorts. It ended up working out well, but made for minimal summit lingering.

Castle Lake and Mt. Shasta from Castle Peak

Fall colors!

Shelter atop Castle Peak

Castle Crags from Castle Peak

We moved to the lookout tower halfway through our trip. Without electricity or heat source, I wasn't sure how Zoey would like it. The room, with its large windows, heated up well in the daytime, but became chilly at night.

Family portrait

Moonlit version of Girard Ridge Lookout and Castle Crags

Mt. Shasta alpen glow from the lookout

A look inside

Lucky for us, one of our friends lent us a propane heater. I'm pretty sure Zoey made a new best friend those nights.  When we turned the heater off at bedtime, she snuggled up in her cube or on my jacket. During the day, she explored the lookout platform and bathed in the sunshine.

I spy a budding romance between Zoey and Mr. Heater

BFFs

Matt and I went for a couple runs while we were at the lookout. I had my first rattlesnake encounter on the PCT at Castle Crags and almost died. It appears that my years of jumping over harmless slugs and salamanders prepared me well to high jump over rattlesnakes too. Whew.

Rattlesnake via lots of zoom and cropping. I was not this close.

14 miles of the PCT

The other run was right from the lookout and on the nearby forest service and logging roads. Of course runs from a lookout always end on an uphill, so I was pretty tired by the time we headed back into town.

Exploring near the lookout tower

Our final day was a stopover in Redding to break up the drive home. Due to wildfires along the route, controlled traffic with just a single passing each afternoon made timing tricky. We ended up with two hours of wait time so we had a long lunch at Whiskeytown Lake. Zoey got some more exploring in before we climbed back into the car. She took me for a walk and enjoyed all the new smells.

It was the perfect family trip for us to reconnect. Zoey is still not doing the best, but we sure are enjoying the time we have left with her. :)