Trees spread over mountainsides like toothpicks spilled from a box. Half-blasted mountain top, still raw from explosive force. A mountaintop viewpoint with Spirit Lake on one side, so covered with fallen trees you can’t see the water, and Mt. St. Helens standing battered but not completely broken on the opposite side. These are my memories from 17 years ago when I first saw Mt. St. Helens.

Yesterday, 33 years after the blast, the land is less raw than when I saw it first. The toothpick piles of trees are still there, but the land surrounding it is now covered with green. Not many trees, but plenty of shrubs and ground cover. Spirit Lake has nearly doubled in size, and the water is now visible, with only the northern end of the lake covered with wood. As it is a National Monument, there has been no clearing of the fallen timber, and some of it looks ready to fall on the road. The road itself is in terrible shape, with plenty of head-to-ceiling bumps to keep you awake. It was easy to say “I’ll never do this again” until you reach the top viewpoint. Then you realize you’re seeing something unique and special.

Trees like toothpicks

Spirit Lake

To the top of the viewpoint of Mt. St. Helens