MOUNT ST. HELENS

WHERE:     From Portland take I 5 north to state highway 503 in Woodland which you follow west past Cougar.  Stop at Jack's restaurant in Cougar for a necessary climbing permit.  I can't remember how  far past Cougar it is but look for signs to Climber's Bivouac and follow the road up to its end where there is a parking area and many spots to set up camp.  During the winter you will want to stay on highway 503 a little longer and follow signs to Marble Mountain Sno-Park.  Many people climb from this spot at 2700 feet then ski or snowboard back down.

PERMITS:    From March 31 until November 1 you need to obtain a climbing permit:  Permits are $15.  Starting May 15th, the park limits the number of climbers to 100 per day.  Sixty permits are issued in advance to the first 60 people who write a request for a permit to climb on a specific day or do so in person.  The other forty are given off in what is called a "lottery": Climbers meet at Jack's Restaurant by a certain time (I think its still 5pm) where forty names are drawn.  I went on a week day (and a very ominous one at that as I'll explain in a minute) when there were less than forty people total waiting for a "lottery" permit so there was no problem getting the permit.

THE HIKE:    This is a three part hike taking you from 3700 feet at Climber's Bivouac to the rim at over 8300 feet elevation in about 5 miles.  The first part goes 2 1/4 mile rises 1100 feet through forest leading toward Monitor Ridge.  Once you get above the timberline follow the big wooden poles placed into the ground every 100-500 feet.  This is where the trail starts to get grueling.  The next 1 1/2-2 miles is mostly a scramble up lava rocks that rise to about 7000 feet.  The nice thing is that each rock provides shade on a sunny day if you need to cool off.  At 7000 feet you enter the last third of the climb going up pumice and ash for another 1300 feet elevation in less than a mile.  The sandy path causes much more effort as you have to constantly battle foot-slide.  The reward for this hike is worth it although you may need to sit down and gulp some water first.  I will have to admit, as tired and beat up that I felt, when I arrived at the top the view made me forget my pain but my deep breathing was a slight reminder.  What can I say about the view ... well you can see everything north, south, east, west, the crater and lava hill below and Spirit Lake on the north side of the mountain.  Of course that means you will see Jefferson, Hood, Rainier and Adams.

NO PLANES IN THE SKY:     I did this hike on September 11, 2001.  It turned out to be the quietest day on the mountain since aircraft began flying into Portland and Seattle.  That was one of those eerie things that I unconsciously noticed without understanding why on the hike up.  I actually got the news about what happened while at the top of the mountain.  A fellow climber had stopped in Cougar for breakfast and caught the developing news on TV inside the restaurant.  He told me and two other climbers at the same time about 5 minutes after reaching the top.  Man ... talk about being put on a psychological roller coaster from pain to euphoria to anger and concern within 5 minutes.  The latest information we got was known to us was this: One plane was unaccounted for (probably the one that crashed over Pennsylvania).  There were several other people at the top when I arrived and about 6 more wandered up during the hour that I was there.  I think everyone felt a bit distatched from the world and helpless due to our remote location.  I guess only views as grand as those on top of that mountain would have been surreal enough to keep my head from dwelling on the recent events.  It wasn't until I got under the views where my head began to burn with questions about the events and what would happen next.  I feel like I should leave some sort of words in memorial but I think most intelligent people agree that war and violence is bad and we all have to persevere the fact that it does exist without making things worse so ...  peace out. 

One other interesting thing was that a majority of the people that were on top while I was there were from Minnesota and the first couple that I met at the top graduated from my alma mater at St. Cloud State University.