Seattle to Oregon Labor Day Weekend
 

We'll be flying in to Seattle late Aug. 30th and will return the 5th early in the morning. We were thinking about making a trip to Mt. St. Helens and then on to Porland and then back to Seattle. Wondering if traffic will be terrible? <BR> <BR>Any ideas where to escape the masses for that long weekend? We've been to the San Juans, Olympic Pen, Vancouver Island, Vicoria, Vancouver BC. We're trying to schedule this around holiday schedules at work. <BR> <BR>If we make Seattle our base, is Mt. St. Helens a day trip or should we plan more. <BR> <BR>We realize we need to make arrangements for lodging soon since it will be a busy holiday weekend. <BR> <BR>Any help you can provide would be great!

Mt. St. Helens (all the way in to the visitor center) is a longish day trip from Seattle, but doable if you don't mind a pretty boring freeway drive a couple of hours each way. <BR> <BR>Labor Day weekend is tough everywhere, the northwest no exception. Actually, you might think about staying put in Seattle for a couple of days to take in the offerings at Bumbershoot, the great arts festival held at Seattle Center. Of course, that's a far cry from avoiding the masses. <BR> <BR>Or you might consider a couple of alternative loops after St. Helens - down to the Columbia and then through the gorge eastbound to Maryhill Museum at Goldendale, then back to Seattle via Yakima, or a different loop down to the Columbia then west along the WA side of the river (lovely and relatively under-visited) to Ilwaco and the Long Beach peninsula, eventually returning to Seattle via Olympia. All these areas will have plenty of visitors, but won't likely be as crowded as the Oregon coast or the national parks.

Thanks John! <BR>How about accommodations around Mt. St. Helens? Looks pretty sparse. <BR> <BR>I like your idea about the loops and was already starting to think about heading towards Long Beach. <BR> <BR>On a different note, if you had to choose would you go to the Olympic Pen. or Mt. St. Helens with a Loop as you suggested, which? We've been all along the northern shore of the Olympic Pen. but not really into the forest. We've never been south of Seattle. We are pretty sure that we'll be making more trips to Washington so we'll be able to hit what we've missed or revisit favorites. <BR> <BR>Thanks again for your help, John! <BR>Thanks John! <BR>How about accommodations around Mt. St. Helens? Looks pretty sparse. <BR> <BR>I like your idea about the loops and was already starting to think about heading towards Long Beach. <BR> <BR>On a different note, if you had to choose would you go to the Olympic Pen. or Mt. St. Helens with a Loop as you suggested, which? We've been all along the northern shore of the Olympic Pen. but not really into the forest. We've never been south of Seattle. We are pretty sure that we'll be making more trips to Washington so we'll be able to hit what we've missed or revisit favorites. <BR> <BR>Thanks again for your help, John! <BR>Thanks John! <BR>How about accommodations around Mt. St. Helens? Looks pretty sparse. <BR> <BR>I like your idea about the loops and was already starting to think about heading towards Long Beach. <BR> <BR>On a different note, if you had to choose would you go to the Olympic Pen. or Mt. St. Helens with a Loop as you suggested, which? We've been all along the northern shore of the Olympic Pen. but not really into the forest. We've never been south of Seattle. We are pretty sure that we'll be making more trips to Washington so we'll be able to hit what we've missed or revisit favorites. <BR> <BR>Thanks again for your help, John!

Susie, you're right about accommodations near the Mt. St. Helens monument - not much to choose from except freeway-exit motels etc. off I-5, although the Portland area is easily reachable after a swing into the park. <BR> <BR>On your second point, while I think the coastal areas of Olympic NP are national treasures, practically speaking trying for accommodation on the coast around Labor Day is a real stretch. I honestly don't think St. Helens is that boffo an experience, but that may just be me (lived in Alaska for a long time, worked near active volcanoes). Still, the southern loop alternatives will allow you to get close enough to bigger towns (Portland, for example) so that accommodation choice will be greater.

Hi John, <BR>I made some calls last night and found several openings in the Long Beach area. I also made some calls and found openings around Mt. St. Helens. I am pleased not to feel rushed to make a decision, but still better do it quick. I was thinking two nights in Long Beach and another couple around Mt. St. Helens. We like to hike (Nothing to hard core) and explore. Is two days too much. Seems like there are so many possibilities. The Columbia River Gorge is also very tempting. Decisions - Decisions.