Mt. St. Helens Expedition - August 1999

Camping

Newly arrived at the campsite, staring at...

...the mountain, just now shaking off the clouds.

It started drizzling in the evening, so we had to cook out in the wet rain.

The raging bonfire.

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[links to a larger image]')" onmouseout="resetHover()" >Cooking frozen steaks was a painstakingly slow operation. Favorite quote: "maybe next time we should thaw them out a bit."

The Ascent

Early the next morning we awoke, had a quick cold breakfast, then set off on the trail up Monitor Ridge. It was drizzly, like the night before.

Mooting in the rain.

GPS measurements.

Winding up through the fog and rain.

Finally we hit the treeline. Anyone remember what elevation this is? 5000?

Group photo op at the 5000 ft elevation marker.

On the rocks above the treeline.

Celebrating a small break in the clouds.

The first sign of snow (6000 feet?).

Climbing into the clouds, the snow got deeper.

Icy posts marked the trail up the ridge.

We hit a deserted weather station around 8000 feet.

Another small break in the clouds.

Rob approaching the summit. The headwind was brutal.

The group at the summit. No view to speak of, but the crater walls were impressive.

The Descent

Of course, as luck would have it the clouds really started breaking up after we were 1000 feet or more back down from the summit. The view from the top was probably spectacular. In any case, my camera had frozen up and it didn't start working until the sun was able to warm it up again.

Blue sky.

I begged a passing hiker to take my picture.

The group descending.

Picking our way through the rockfield on the way down.

Diving back into the cloud layer.

Coming out of the cloud layer.

Good view beneath the clouds (6000 feet?).

Almost back to the trailhead.

A last look at the mountain.

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