M&J

This is our first visit to Mount St Helens.
We are flying in/out of Portland and will have three nights for this brief trip.
We want to see Mount St Helen and then drive the Oregon coast.
What city should we use when visiting Mount St Helens?
thanks

sheri

Mt. St. Helens can be done as a day trip from Portland. It'll take about an hour to get from Portland to Castle Rock on I-5, then it's about 45 miles in to the Visitors Center that's closest to the volcano (there are several visitors centers, but if you're coming all this way, it's worth driving to this one, I think).

If you are at all outdoorsy/camping types (and assuming you're coming in the summertime), I really enjoyed the "tent & breakfast" program offered by a company called Mt. St. Helens Adventure Tours. You stay overnight in the blast zone in safari-style tents (they provide everything), do an evening elk viewing and generally get to see "behind the scenes" and see how the land is regenerating, etc. It's pretty cool.

Bob Brown

It is worth it. We went there the first time before all of the visitor center stuff was built and got to poke around the devastated area on oiled forest roads.
The paving was not much more than a ribbon of black to keep the dust down.
The interpretation is much better now and the whole show is better organized.
Seeing St. Helens makes you realize what Ranier could do if it suddently decided to wake up and show off its might.

John

There's no "could" and "if" as far as Mt. Rainier is concerned. Geologists insist it's "will" and "when," as in "The incredible decastation that WILL happen WHEN Mt. Rainier blows its top.

Bob Brown

Several months ago, Scientific American had an article on what could happen if a semi liquid chunk of Ranier, known as a Lahar, were to suddenly surge down any one of several drainage valleys. St. Helens let loose with a titanic blast that destroyed a relatively unpopulated area. Ranier by contrast overlooks a highly populated area. Of course, we don't know when Ranier will pop its cork, but I doubt if it will be this month, or even this year.

sheri

Bruce Barcott's book on Rainier (I'm pretty sure the title is "Measure of A Mountain" or something similar--I got it from the library so I don't have it in front of me!) had lots of interesting information about what scientists speculate will happen when Rainier does blow. The "lahar" mudslide Bob refers to is apparently the most likely scenario and there are several towns right in the probable pathway. While his book is not a scientific treatise (more a set of essays about Rainier), it's an interesting read.

Deb

when you get to the airport, you go north on I-5-- take the exit 49, this is Castle Rock, toutle exit. When you take this exit, go to the right, this will take you to the mountain. the road to the mt. is called spirit lake hyw. the local paper web site is www. tdn. com from Portland, you are only a houe away from the exit. there is a Theater at this exit that knows all about the mountain. After you see the Mt. go back on to the freeway, take exit 36-go staight on this road, after you get to the 4th set of lights, be in left hand turn lane( You'll know this set, cause there's a burger King right there. ) go over the bridge and take a right, this will take you to the coast.

Zonk

My wife visited there in the mid-1990s just before a big visitors center was built. There was a little center at the time with a theatre. Unfortunately, she visited with a male friend she was cheating on me with and they held hands in the theatre during a short film. Not very memorable for me but she enjoyed the visit to some extent.