Always a lovely and interesting trail if you have an eye for detail and interest in geographical and ecological variety. Extra-lovely if the weather is good for viewing the mountain. Morning is best for viewing the ecology; afternoon best for viewing Mt. St. Helens.
I first did this trail with my middle-school-age kids about 15 years ago, long enough ago that it has changed significantly. Especially: rapid growth of young trees along the river (Yay! Post-eruption recovery!) means that the "Toutle River Viewpoint" marked on my map no longer offers a view of the river. But still, this is a great trail for seeing the whole scale of sights from spiders in their webs up through the volcano itself—if the weather cooperates.
We drove from Castle Rock starting at 7 AM, and intermittent fog and clouds drifting around the mountains (but not covering them up) made the scenery along the way especially dramatic. The trail head is at a low point in the valley, meaning it tends to be foggier than the surroundings, and it was completely fogged in when we started the hike at 8. But the fog meant there were droplets of dew on everything, especially the hundreds of spider webs attached to plants along the way. And the trail goes through many beautiful and interesting scenes regardless of the weather.
We did the loop clockwise, and in less than 1/2 hour we were at the place with the best view of St. Helens on the loop, at the junction of the Boundary Trail and Hummocks Trail. However, the view was still blocked by fog! By the time we finished the loop the fog had cleared, but the morning sun still accentuated haze, making the mountain view look washed out. Really it would be best to get that view in the afternoon or evening when the sun is farther west.
Comments