The road finally opened on July 4. There was not a trace of snow on the drive up to Windy Ridge, so maybe the road had been closed for inspection and repairs. There were several areas where the pavement had sunk, and the center line wasn’t always centered. Small trees encroached on the driving lane from the shoulder. Drive cautiously. Despite all this, the pavement has been patched of potholes and is in pretty good shape for a mountainous serpentine road. We set out from the Windy Ridge parking lot along the old logging road (Trail 207) and continued past the junction at 1.7 miles to the end of the road at 2.0 miles. From here we took trails 216E and 216 (Loowit Trail) to trail 216F, which dead-ended at Loowit Falls. The total distance one-way is 4.6 miles. The elevation stays between 4000 and 4400 feet until the final junction, from which the trail gains 300 feet to the falls at 4700. The road and trail are completely snow-free. From the rocky road to pumice gravel to bigger volcanic rocks in gullies, there is no relief from a hard walking surface. Despite the nearly flat terrain, allow extra time for walking on gravel and stepping around rocks while crossing numerous small gullies. If you want photos of the mountain and crater, get them early in your hike. The closer you get to the falls, the more the lava dome shields your view of the mountain and the crater rim. Along the road were numerous paintbrush (flowers) in bloom, including some of the reddest I have ever seen. There were more along the trail. The most common wildflower was penstemon, in a vivid purple. A few fir trees have taken root, but even 33 years after the blast, the tallest we saw was only a few feet high. Other than near some streams, the few trees than exist along the trail appear windswept and grow low to the ground. Only one stream crossing requires you to fight your way through small trees; it was the only place that even had a cluster of trees. We saw other hikers drawing water from one stream about midway to the falls. But the next stream was quite muddy. A couple others looked clear, but were not flowing heavily. And the water downstream of Loowit Falls is off-trail and unavailable. So I wouldn’t count on water being available year-round. Carry a lot; the trail is completely exposed. Protect yourself from sunburn and windburn too. Loowit Falls is a nice destination. Others have posted photos of the falls from trail’s end. I chose instead to include a photo showing how it appears as you approach (basically, gray). There’s not a lot of color near the falls, but they still present an attractive sight. I also included a photo looking north in the blast area, with a portion of Spirit Lake visible. Notice how different the terrain appears from one area to another, and how little vegetation has taken hold even 33 years after the eruption. There were only a few other hikers when we went, and this made the experience even better. We noticed how quiet things can get when water and wind, and an occasional bird, provide the only sounds you hear. The quietude and the minimal vegetation combine for a rather surreal experience.

Finally made it to Windy Ridge. Came up here in Mid-May only to find the same thing I encountered in Late June - Road Closed due to Snow to Windy Ridge. It's late August, temps around 90 and there is no SNOW except for in the shadows in the higher elevations. Arrived Thursday the 25th at stayed at Iron Creek campground which borders the Cispus River. Went up to Windy Ridge to watch the sunset that evening. It lived up to it's name, WINDY! Yes, it was certainly breezy to say the least. Hiked up the first portion of the trail that leads toward Loowit Falls for a look see of what Friday would bring me on the full hike. Ran into a small pile of Bear Scat, hmmm? Left after the sunseterrific colors were dissipating before it was totally dark. It's a mighty twisty road back to the route 25, especially till you get out of the blast zone. Friday I arrived at roughly 10AM, No Wind? Loaded up my gear and set off down the ridge trail. About 1/2 way down I spotted a small herd (6 or so) of Elk grazing off toward the east on a lower hilltop. The sun was still partially hidden behind early morning cloud cover. Crossed paths with a solo hiker who had just about finished the Loowit Trail loop around the mountain perimeter; said it took him 2 1/2 days. Said it was hot! A couple on Mtn. Bikes road by soon after. By the time I reached the end of the trail at Pumice Flats it was getting pretty warm out. I decided to take of my lightweight long sleeve roll up sleeve hiking shirt and completed the rest of the hike in my synthetic activewear T-shirt. Had a hat, and ripstop cargo pants. Lots of beautiful wildflowers adorned the path on and off up to this point. I pass another solo hiker who looks really hot, not wearing a shirt and wiping sweat off his forehead with his T-shirt. As I reached the other side of the flats the heat begins to kick in a little more and I decide it's time for a small break, some water and photo ops of flowers and the terrain. I continue on toward Loowit Falls as the blackbirds sit atop the marking posts in the distance. Usually not moving till I am about 15 feet away from them. As I enter large patches of wildflowers I can hear the buzz of the bees as they pollinate; paying absolutely no attention to me at all. The day is certainly heating up as I begin to feel the heat build up from the backpack I am carrying. Out of the nowhere I hear the sound of water as I come upon a muddy little runoff. I am hoping the falls are getting near. Some places the path is very soft and it is also very narrow. This is no place for carelessness and getting a twisted ankle. I hear the sound of water again as I come upon what appears to be an Oasis in the middle of the devastated blast path. And an Oasis it is! Willow Springs Oasis to be exact. You must walk through the runoff to follow the path that is shrouded in vegetation taller than most people. It's shady and cool in here! I will stop on the way back for a rest. Loowit Falls shouldn't be too much further. The disappointing part of the journey; I didn't see a sign that ever said I was at Loowit Falls. It looks like the trail continued, on the opposite side of a very bouldery ravine.I began to go beyond what were likely the falls. The Lava rocks were getting very large and the ravine dropped down pretty sharply with no clear path to the other side, where I could clearly see a trail. I sat here a while debating what I should do. I then noticed this quite loud clicking type sound? What I wondered was that? It is so eerily quiet out here that all the noises seem amplified. It was the sound of flying grasshoppers! I sat here, took some close up shots of the west inside crater wall and ate a snack. After my break I decide to head back to the falls about 50 feet back or so; they must be the Loowit Falls,they just didn't seem very spectacular. I walked a little ways up towards the water and climbed alongside the rocky area next to the water. The soft footing was giving way some and I decided this might not be the right path or not to be climbed upon. There was a slightly larger fall drop, but still nothing worthy as I had thought. So I dropped back down to the run off level below the first falls I saw. While I rested here taking a break and snapping a few photos, another hiker appeared. He too climbed up the same area I did and soon after I began hiking back toward the Oasis, I heard him yell out "there are some bigger falls coming over a cliff higher up". He was apparently more determined than I to find something better and bigger and had. I at that point was not thrilled by what I had seen and decided that I would just head back to the Oasis. Besides, I wasn't too sure if we were supposed to be climbing alongside the falls upwards to view them? Might not be considered the path and subject to the $100 minimum fine? Back at the Oasis I splashed some of the icy cool water over my arms and hands. Felt absolutely refreshing! It was absolutely beautiful here; as the pictures show. To me, this was worth the hike more than the falls I didn't see might have been. A true Oasis in the middle of a section of desert terrain. I could have spent hours here. Alas, that was not possible and after 30 minutes I decided it was time to head back to Windy Ridge. PS -Some have said the water here (Oasis) is fine to drink, I'd still not drink it without filtering unless you were absolutely dehydrated. Various sites calculate the total journey I travelled at roughly 9.7 miles or so. I did it in 4 hours and 15 minutes, including all the photo ops and Oasis fun. I would definitely do this hike again and branch off to some of the other trails. There is Abraham Trail and of course Truman Trail just to name a couple. Mt St Helens is truly an interesting experience. I never thought I would be so drawn here, but I have been up here 3 times since Mid May and find it more interesting every time. Sadly, the campgrounds nearby all close at the end of September; I was hoping to return around Halloween for a Spooktacular weekend!

Went from Windy ridge trail to the Loowit trail to the Loowits falls trail and returned the same way. Making this a 9.8 miles rt. This is so amazing! Make this a must do. Somtimes I forget how small I really am in the world, which is a good thing to remember. Great hike, views, flowers, waterfall.

A dozen cars at the parking lot trailhead, but it was a Saturday and the sun was out. We did the loop on trail 216E to Loowit Falls and returned on trail 207. Met several groups that had hiked from the other side at Johnston Ridge Observatory. Indian paint brush and lupine in full bloom. No tourist helocopters hovering overhead made for a very pleasant walk. Always amazed how pristine the hikers keep the trails- no litter, no short-cuts.

St. Helens under a full moon! (waxing) This was a superb way to enjoy the St. Helens blast area during mid-late summer. The weather for this trip was partly cloudy, which helped to cut the heat, and made for spectacular sunsets and moon gazing. I arrived at the end of the Windy Ridge road at about 7 P.M. - after most of the tourist throngs had left. Hiked to the Loowit trail and dropped my pack to catch the sunset near Loowit Falls (leaving a little bit earlier would have been wise in order to make it to the Falls before dark.) I returned to my pack and climbed to Windy Gap directly towards the rising moon. The trail here, as well as descending on the other side, definitely shows the wear of a rapidly changing geology - nothing to extreme, but certainly something to be careful of. The trail would still be education for youngsters, but they should be somewhat experienced and respectful. This trail is probably a good place to teach these various lessons. I bivy'd at Windy Gap, on the boundary of the restricted zone. There would also be some good camp areas to on the Shoulder point just to the East of the Gap - right along the restricted area Boundary. This area is a bit more private, larger, and offers adds the bonus view of Rainier to the Adams and Hood mix. The moon over the desertscape of St. Helens and the clouds was absolutely magical. So much so I feel right asleep, never to catch the moon directly over St. Helens - and free of clouds. I returned to Windy Ridge via the Plains of Abraham. The final section of the trail traverses the ridge crest and would be a lightning risk in moderate-severe weather. Today a rainbow was spotted over the main St. Helens mud flow just as approaching the ridge. Unfortunately it was gone by the time I arrived at the Ridge top. I got back to the car by 10:00 a.m. after covering approximately 10 miles of desolate moonlit beauty. It appears that their may be an option to extend the loop via Ape Canyon, but as there appears to be some new trail construction, the tourist descriptions were contradictory and/or ambigous, and my climbers 7.5' topo didn't cover the area I decided not to explore. The loop continues from Ape Canyon to Swift creek and ends with a hot and dry climb back to Windy Ridge. On my loop water was available on the trail to Loowit Falls and also on the Plains of Abraham. Both of these creeks were small enough to dry up in a drought year or from changing geology. Windy Gap is a dry camp. Flowers were ok-good. There was something that appeared to be a deserty lupine kind of thing growing all over the place on mudflow which was interesting. It may well be just Lupine adjusting to the deficient soil. No bugs.