Glamping in Mt. Shasta
Sleepin' in canvas tents at Belcampo Farms near Mt. Shasta, CA
For an early two year anniversary trip, Hipcamp hooked us up with a two-night stay at Belcampo Farms in Gazelle, CA - a town just north of Mount Shasta, CA. The air quality had finally improved and the smoke from the fires was clearing just in time for our visit.
Hipcamp Rating: 99%
My Rating: 100,000,000%
Quick Facts:
Location - Gazelle, CA - about 4.5 hours north of the Bay. The Hipcamp is on a farm with fresh vegetables, an orchard, a greenhouse, sheep, and apparently a cat that I never met.
Cost - $125/night (and completely worth it). You have your own personal bathroom, a heated shower, TWO queen beds with a ton of comforters and really nice blankets, an open area to eat, drink, play horseshoes, and have a campfire (when it's not fire season).
There are 8 tents total but because of Covid they're at half capacity, so only 3 (don't quote me - could be 4) tents are open at a time.
You're gonna want to set aside time to explore the farm. It's absolutely beautiful at sunset, and walking around and exploring for about an hour is amazing. There's a tree swing to play in and sheep across the street who are herded by very diligent and adorable dogs.
A dog from a neighboring farm came by to play with us. She was an angel from the heavens. She likes belly rubs and running around in the grass.
What Else We Did:
Hiked to Castle Lake Overlook - our official anniversary hike. You can see pictures from last year's hike here. This year the trees hadn't quite turned as much, but there were bits of fall foliage peeking out! If you want to see the fall colors in Mt. Shasta, I'd go towards the end of October.
Got bagels and coffee from Yak's on all days. Their handmade bagels might be the best on the West Coast, and their latte is an appropriate size (aka large).
We attempted to go to Castle Craggs Vista Point but it was closed for wildfire safety. Instead, we wandered around the creek and parts of the park that were open and it was very autumn-esque and beautiful. On the way out, it RAINED. A miracle for all.
If I had to complain about one thing it would be:
There's a cat named Basil that's in many of the Hipcamp photos, is mentioned in the reviews, and even makes an appearance in the welcome packet. But I never saw or met Basil, and I know we would have been friends. The dog we met mostly made up for it, but I'll always wonder what could have been.