The unseasonably good weather here in SW Washington proved to be just
too tempting yesterday. Despite the oppressive weight of the studying I needed
to do for an upcoming economics test, I couldn't resist taking a break for a quick
afternoon jaunt to Mt. St. Helens. It's been a spectacularly warm January, but
even with the record breaking winter temperatures, I was shocked at how little
snow there was on Mt. St. Helens and the mountains surrounding it. Even the
region’s highest peaks, Coldwater, Whittier, Margaret, and Potato, retain
little more than a few scattered snowfields. St. Helens itself has fared little
better, and vast bare streaks extend far up its flanks.
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| Don't stand near this on a windy day......... |
It felt like spring on the hummocks trail, which despite its short
length and valley-bottom location, offers a great variety of views and points
of interest, weaving among weed-choked beaver ponds (the rising waters of which
have forced the trail to be relocated many times since its construction),
bright alder forests, and wide mossy meadows. Several trees have fallen across
the trail, and it looks like an industrious beaver will provide an additional
obstacle in the near future, but the majority of the tread is in fine
conditions. The slides that used to plague this loop have long since stabilized,
and the slopes of the hummocks are green with thick mattes of moss and tan
fields of grass.
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| A perfect reflection in a hummocks tarn. |
The upper North Fork of the Toutle River seems to have settled
into a fairly steady channel, and at the moment it's not running much faster
than in early summer. I really wish they would put in a trail here crossing the
valley to Castle Lake; a suspension bridge would be ideal, since the river here
is shallow enough as to be easily forded, and sufficiently braided as to make
seasonal footbridges practical.  |
| Toutle River and Mt. St. Helens |
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| Mountains Mini, Coldwater, Whittier, and Margaret. |
Sunset was both mellow and spectacular, with low clouds on the
horizon casting the mountain in early shadow, while the clouds above were lit
with a light of pinkish hue. If the weather stays as nice as it was today until
next weekend, I could imagine hiking to destinations as high as 5 or even 6
thousand feet and encountering very little snow at all! While the greedy hiker
in me celebrates this unexpected early hiking season, the ski and snowshoe
enthusiast looks anxiously for a few snowy months to frolic in powder, and the
environmentalist cringes at what this means for the summer snowpack and the
increasing probability of a bad drought.
One last thing of note is the increasingly hideous appearance of
the forests adjacent to the Monument along Spirit Lake Highway. In addition to
several particularly offensive clearcuts near the Coldwater Visitor Center, the
tops have been cut off of nearly all the Noble Firs on several hundred acres.
The result is the appearance of a poorly trimmed hedge. I don't have any photos
(I was in a hurry to hit the trail before dark), but I would appreciate any insight
into the purpose for this strange forestry practice. It remains something of a
tragedy that when the Monument was created, its borders did not extend to the
top of the ridge along which Spirit Lake Highway was later built, and of course,
to the sadly still unprotected High Lakes region. As the primary portal to
Southwest Washington's greatest tourist attraction, it seems vital that this
region present as attractive an appearance as possible.
Enjoy the fine weather while it lasts. I know I will!
