Shasta Lake and Klamath Falls

From Redding we go north to the point where the Sacramento River is blocked by the Shasta Dam and thus creates the big Lake Shasta, the largest reservoir in California. The dam was built immediately after the Hoover dam (1937-45) by the same Chief Engineer, who was bent on achieving a better survival rate among the workers the second time (600 died building the Hoover dam). And he did succeed.   

The dam is huge (183 m high). We see a fish down there (it is P who discovers it, of course). It must be very big since we are able to see it at all - later we see people standing on the lawn and they are just little specks.

The Sacramento River as it continues from the dam.

We take a tour of the dam, and here we are going down about 100 m with an elevator from the top of the dam (M looks a bit concerned).

Inside the dam there is a long tunnel with amazing acoustics - sound bounces clearly off the opposite wall and returns to you in about half a second.

The huge generators by the dam.

From Lake Shasta we continue north on I5. We are very hungry, but now the distance between the exits on the highway is increasing and we realize that we are driving through a great wilderness. Suddenly, the majestic snow-clad peak of the volcano Mount Shasta rises before us. There appears to be a town called Mount Shasta and we take the exit.

It turns out that Mount Shasta City is an attractive-looking western town with many food options.

We eventually find some Mexican fast food in Shasta Mt., which was what M wanted. So we are happy! 

Driving away from Mt. Shasta

The landscape is vast

Infinity tracks. We stop here because M needs to pee...

Everything is at a grand scale here.

We eventually arrive at our hotel in Klamath Falls, on the other side of the state border. Now we are in Oregon.