An idyllic meadow on Mount Shasta that some say is in danger of being “loved to death” by tourists has been given new restrictions this month to curb visitors and bad behavior and help the environment recover.
Panther Meadows, a lush and remote landscape of waist-high wildflowers and bubbling springs on the south side of Shasta, is sacred to the indigenous Winnemem Wintu tribe. The spring waters that flow from the mountainside there are considered a “gateway of all life forms,” according to tribal chief Caleen Sisk, and tribal members have made annual pilgrimages there for centuries.
Located about a half-hour drive east of the town of Mount Shasta, the meadow is a destination for spiritualists, tourists, hippies and hikers, some of whom have over the years flouted regulations designed to preserve Panther’s special character and fragile ecosystem.
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To revive the meadow, Shasta-Trinity National Forest officials issued an ordinance on Aug. 14 that tightens parking and camping options and visitor activities for the next two years. Among other things, group sizes will be limited to 10 people and entry to the mountain springs will be prohibited, as well as public nudity, campfires and dogs running loose. Violations can be punished with a $5,000 fine and up to six months in jail, or both.
The meadow “cannot withstand the impacts of recreational activities without long-term environmental consequences,” says the order signed by Shasta-Trinity Forest Superintendent Rachel Birkey. “Sensitive vegetation continues to be trampled and scattered campsites continue to grow, causing soil compaction and other resource damage.”
The Forest Service does not track visitor numbers at Panther Meadows, but a spokeswoman told the Chronicle that “about 140,000 people visit the area each year and the meadow is often packed with people, especially in the summer.”
Balancing the impact of tour buses, celestial gatherings and outlaw campers has been a back-and-forth process over the years, says Johnny Dame, who served as camp director at Panther Meadows for 23 years until 2017. Signs, guide ropes and verbal warnings have kept some people in check, but have not been enough to preserve the area’s delicate ecology, he says.
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“There’s a lot of resistance to authority figures up there,” Dame said. “I always wanted to make it clear to people that this is an incredible and vibrant place and that they can be part of the team to keep it that way.”
Among the meadow’s many delicate plants is mountain heather, a shrub that takes 200 years to reach its full 8 inches (20 centimeters) tall and produces small bunches of bell-shaped magenta flowers. Heather areas in Panther Meadows are “still recovering from a buildup of humans in the 1980s that trampled and damaged the plants,” according to the Forest Service.
Chris Carr, owner and CEO of Shasta Mountain Guides, said he was grateful during the years when severe avalanches on the mountain swept away the road to Panther Meadows because it brought some peace to the area.
“It’s sad that it’s not being respected, and I’m pleased with the efforts to preserve what we have here,” he said.
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The unrest is being felt particularly strongly by the Winnemem Wintu, for whom the meadow is sacred ground, said Chief Sisk. “We never camp there and we never leave anything behind,” she said.
It is horrifying to see visitors walking barefoot through the meadow’s spring stream, she said. “They are destroying it.”
It remains to be seen whether the new federal regulation will bring real benefits to the meadow.
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“We believe this place should have its own time,” Sisk said.
Reach Gregory Thomas: [email protected]
