You’ll see the mountain long before you see the town. As the second-tallest peak in the Cascade Range, 14,179-foot Mount Shasta towers over northern California like a volcanic reminder that life is larger than us.

The small town at the base of the mountain, the city of Mount Shasta, has a spiritual, otherworldly vibe, too. The place has more crystal shops than grocery stores, is home to a new kombucha brewery, and is a mecca for those seeking healing and transcendence. Visitors come from all over in search of the region’s portal, or vortex, into another world. Yep, it’s that kind of trippy.

The town — 60 miles south of the California-Oregon border and four-and-half hours from San Francisco via Interstate 5 — is also on the edge of a vast swathe of some of the finest wilderness in California. Shasta-Trinity National Forest covers 2.2 million acres, the largest national forest in the state, and is home to several Wild and Scenic-designated rivers, many alpine lakes and 154 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail.

But you don’t have to be a crampon-clad mountaineer set on summiting a 14er or a new-age believer on a vision quest to enjoy Mount Shasta. There’s something here for everyone.

Read the full story in the San Francisco Chronicle.