The Stars at Lake Shasta

At the end of September a big group of friends took a trip to Lake Shasta, a massive reservoir up north, to have a weekend of houseboating and good times.

This was my first time on what has been a long-running annual trip for them.

There was a lot of this


a lot of this




Hip E


and a little of this.


And a lot more which I can't show.

By the second day it was all a bit overwhelming, with too many people on a boat at once and I started to feel sick, which is somewhat inevitable for me. The last night was a blow out with everyone going nuts dancing and partying, and I partook for a while before feeling too sick and hiding out.

Eventually everyone settled down to bed and Reid and I were sleeping on the roof of the boat with a few other people. Someone put on Stars of the Lid and I drifted in and out of consciousness looking at the massive amount of clear bright stars in the moonless sky.

When very ill our senses are somewhat more heightened for sensation as we search our bodies for causes and needs. I lay in the dark and felt the breeze and my eyes would open as the music swelled and I glimpsed the stars of the universe and my eyes closed on their own again as the music died. There was a cold breeze that ran across the top of the boat as we lay warm in our sleeping bags side by side.

It's hard to describe without actually hearing the music, and I have no pictures of the night sky at Shasta, so I have an activity for you.

Click the Youtube video below to play, but ignore the visuals and only pay attention to the audio, and then click this link. Open and close your eyes as the music swells and dies, and imagine lying on the roof of a boat in the middle of a quiet lake as a chilled breeze blows across your cheeks, and you will feel much better, too.