Mom came for a much-needed visit in mid/late June, and we opted to go somewhere different than our usual haunts. We headed north to Mt St Helens, and were richly rewarded for the 2 hour drive. I hadn't been there since I was in 6th grade, so around 19 years ago. That visit was 9 years post-eruption, so it has now been 28 years since the big kaboom, and a lot has changed.
There are sites all over Bronson Pinchot National Forest - scratch that, I mean Gifford Pinchot National Forest - worth seeing, but unfortunately there is no road that circumnavigates the whole mountain, so something that's 20 miles away as the crow flies might take 4 hours to get to by road.
Being that we only had a few hours - ideally, this would make a great camping trip for a long weekend, to see the many sites on all 4 sides - we had to stick to the north and west sides, but those provided stunning views at any rate. This route takes you along the North Fork of the Toutle River, where the mud flows ultimately raised the floor of the river valley by 150+ feet.
As you leave I-5 and head east towards the mountain, you can hardly throw a rock without hitting a visitor center (whether state, federal, or private) or dramatic view point. Here's a view from the visitor center near Castle Rock by Silver Lake. It's a bit tough to see her in the photo, because the sky was positively bathed with sunlight, and the vibrant greens somewhat drowned out the white snowcapped beauty. This is almost 50 miles from the base, but even here you can tell that she's one giant mountain!
The drive in from this first visitor center to our ultimate destination, Johnston Ridge Observatory, entailed about 45 minutes or so of beautiful forested country and cool bridges. (Note: When you pull off at a viewpoint called 'Bridge View', the view is *not* that of the mountain from a bridge. It's really just a view of a bridge.)
As you approach from the northwest, you start to see the gaping hole in her side. We couldn't resist the snapping a few pics at this viewpoint, where we also viewed herds of elk that have congregating in the area again since the year after the eruption. I also 'fed' a large elk statue here, much to my dad's befuddlement when he viewed the pics. Time for an eye checkup, okay, Dad? ;o)
As we got higher in elevation and closer to mountain, the stillness and heat gave way to substantial winds. At this particular place, the Loowit Viewpoint, the blowing ash and dust gave her a surreal misty quality. If you had told me I wasn't actually looking at a mountain but rather at a matte painting, I would've almost believed it.
As you drive towards the mountain, there's a pretty clear line of demarcation where the Weyerhauser-owned lands were replanted and where the national monument lands have been intentionally left untouched to see how and when life will return. The copious quantities of ash (several feet deep in places) initially prevented new plant growth, unless a plant had survived that was already rooted in the soil beneath the ash... of course, that's in the places that still have soil and weren't blasted all the way down to the bedrock. It may take centuries for abundant life to return within the 6-mile 'blast zone' around the mountain. Anyhow, I digress...
We left Loowit and discovered to our surprise that we were literally just around the bend from Johnston Ridge Observatory. The observatory, named in honor of geologist David Johnston who was killed in the blast, is a mere 5.5 miles from the crater, and the view is breathtaking. From here, you can actually see the glaciers inside the crater, as well as the new cone trying to 'rebuild' itself. Although quite a few plant and animal species have returned in the past 28 years, the pumice plain in front of the lateral blast area is still barren and haunting.
Mom and I lingered for a long time, not really wanting to leave her. Mountains in general are impressive, but she's one of those special ones that seems utterly majestic and imbued with (mostly) repressed strength, all the while being simply gorgeous. She seemed to speak, if you can believe it. (Maybe this is what the Bible refers to about even the rocks crying out?) It was hard to leave, and we kept craning our heads backwards as we drove away, always wanting one last view.
Kathie, next time you are here visiting in late spring/summer/early fall, we'll all need to take a road trip to see her in person. I, for one, am I kinda sad that I stayed away for so long and have missed out on this beauty in our 'backyard.'
Just a shout out to Mommers - Thank you so much for coming to visit and being there to comfort my hurting heart. I continue to be grateful for the providence of your presence that weekend. I love you!!
2 comments:
I would love to go up that way. Your pictures are fantastic, but I am sure don't come near to the awe of the real thing.
And amen to mommies. They are the best, and fix soooo many things :)
(Sorry--I had to repost the comment--there was an apostrophe in the wrong place!)
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