My first hike in the blast zone of Mt Saint Helens. Pulling into a busy parking lot with a food cart and then waiting in line at the visitor center for an $8 day pass did not seem like a promising start to a wilderness experience. A few miles out we were able to ditch the crowds and enjoy this dramatic and surprisingly barren landscape, littered with downed trees that are all eerily pointing in the same direction as a result of the eruption in 1980. What an incredible area. I can't believe it has taken me this long to explore some of it.
Mt Saint Helens - A Gutsy Ski Run
I snapped this on our way up Mt Saint Helens last weekend. It might not be visible on a phone screen, but that little black dot was the second of two skiers. The first set off a minor avalanche in his wake (visible in the photo) that crept down the slope and sounded like whispering death for several minutes while the second skier worked up the nerve. And then it was time.
I'm glad that I got to see this.
Mt Saint Helens Ascent
Some photos of this year's ascent.
I had an extensive write up too, but accidentally lost it!