Boundary Trail, Hummocks Trail — Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026

Beautiful hike through sunset on the Boundary Trail from Hummocks Trailhead (currently the end of the Hwy 504 due to a washout-induced road closure) up to the Johnston Ridge Observatory. With high pressure and a temperature inversion, easterly outflow winds were very strong and made hiking a little miserable for brief stretches due to clouds of blowing pumice and dust (visible in some of the pics below). We did not see any other hikers beyond the initial rise above the hummocks. The real story was the snow, or lack thereof. Mt St Helens should look like a "snow cone" not "chocolate marble"! There was more snow late last October. The trail is 95% snow free, and the mountain has exposed glacial ice in the crater. Pretty grim snow situation! But it WAS very beautiful. It is possible to hike beyond Johnston Ridge (e.g. Boundary out towards Harry's Trail) with snow, but pretty straightforward conditions for mid-January. Hopefully this snow season will turn around.

• Distance: 10-1/2 miles
• Vertical: 2575 ft
• Duration: 5-1/2 hours (we waited for sunset)
• Road/Parking: Hwy 504 is still closed at the Hummocks Trailhead, so there remains no road access to Johnston Ridge Observatory. The observatory is also closed as a result. The road is snow-free, except for the last 1/4 mile from the observatory. With the temperature inversion, there was dense fog on the way in/out from I5. National Forest Pass required to park. There were only 3 other cars there today, and we did not see any other parties, or footprints, after the first two miles or so.
• Weather: Sunny with high cloud; 40-50Fs (temperature inversion); strong gusts to 35 MPH blowing pumice and dust at times; seemed warmer in the sun. When we arrived, it looked like there was a prescribed burn going on or something, as there were clouds of dust in front of the mountain and blowing off the edges of the hummocks. It was all the result of STRONG outflow winds, which persisted all day, but immediately subsided once the sun went down. Eyewear was essential to avoid the sand/dust. I will admit the weather made the hike challenging at times, but there were plenty of more sheltered areas along the Boundary Trail. A lot more work heading up than normal for sure. 
• Trail: The trail is in good condition without any obstructions. There are two sections where rain or wind has flattened the trail notch cut into some steep and sandy spots, so poles are useful to navigate these short, sandy sections where a slip would be problematic. The trail is 95% snow free. There are a few patchy spots in the sheltered trees on the Hummocks Trail, and then miles ahead on the Boundary Trail where the trail briefly curves around a drainage, again in sheltered trees. After that, the next snow is beyond the Loowit Viewpoint (within sight of the observatory), and there was some hard-packed snow to navigate from there all the way up to the top. Evidence of previous post-holing, but none today. The observatory is of course closed, but the entrance does provide some shelter from the wind and blowing dust. We were tempted to take the road back to get out of the wind, but it is closed to all traffic, including "foot", per signage. The views from the observatory are incredible, but we did not want to walk all the way back in the dark, so we positioned ourselves up the ridge within ~2 miles of the trailhead for sunset. Only a sliver of a moon, so the trail got dark very quickly.
• Takeaway: I would say this felt more like a fall hike than a spring hike - spring would have more leftover snow from winter, with big drifts on parts of the trail! It was worth waiting for sunset on the ridge just before descending into the valley dotted with "hummocks" - the mounds in the foreground created by pyroclastic material blown from the mountain. We only hiked ~1 mile in true darkness back to the trailhead (virtually a new moon).