Our weather has been very wet and gloomy in Western Washington State this spring. So, I'm especially happy that the sun decided to make an appearance for today's planned visit to the
Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, the 31st anniversary of the eruption. To get to the Johnston Ridge Observatory, we drove the Spirit Lake Memorial Hwy. The vistas from both the national forest and within the monument were spectacular. St. Helens was out in all her glory. You couldn't ask for a more perfect day.
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Mount St. Helens, 5 miles away from the Johnston Ridge Observatory. On May 31, 1980 --
first the explosion blasted this area, then the worlds largest avalanche covered the valley floor,
finally everything was buried beneath hundreds of feet of ash. Awesomely sobering.
Thirty-one years later, plant, insect and animal life are returning. |
Once at Johnston Ridge, we marveled at the mountain, took in several Ranger talks, explored some exhibits and watched a well-done documentary on the eruption.
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Spirit Lake in the distance, to the left of Mount St. Helens.
The lake doubled in size after the May 1980 eruption. |
Three hundred forty miles and 9 hours later we're back home, tired and happy. On our return trip, we took the Jackson Highway north, which runs roughly parallel to I-5 from Toledo to Chehalis. What a nice treat. I love driving the back roads and this diversion added some extra time to appreciate the lovely scenery, farms, old homes and older cars & trucks along the way.
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John in front of the Johnston Ridge Observatory,
Mount St. Helens National Monument (5/18/11). |
Now, where should we go next?
It's hard to believe that it has been 31 years! It seems like just a few years since the eruption. I guess time flies.
ReplyDeleteWhere to next? Have you been down to the Bonnivile Dam and fish hatchery in Oregon lately?
We were there a couple of years ago and Craig picked up a fish bookmark at the hatchery. He wants another one. I have written to them but have not gotten a response yet. :~)