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| Checking out the trail to Windy Pass |
"Hey want to run around Mt St Helens?" my good friend and running partner asked me as we were hiking around Mt Hood this past summer. "Sure, that sounds fun", I replied. This is how I get myself into these adventures, by saying yes and then doing the research. The trail around Mt St Helens is called the Loowit Trail #216, there are several trails to the Loowit Trail, we chose June Lake based on access to the Loowit trail and our access to St Helens from the south. Overall, there is 6,700 feet elevation gain and loss around the mountain and it is 30ish miles in length, all very doable for someone with a good fitness level and endurance. We checked the weather forecasts, pick our weekend and started planning. The day we ended up going was early in October. We got lucky with the weather, it was warm with almost no wind and completely clear skies.
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| boulder field trail marker |
Our adventure started in the dark around 6:00 am with headlamps on we slowly ran up the June Lake trail to the intersection with the Loowit trail. It was light out when we reached the Loowit trail and getting warm, we striped our extra layers and changed hats from wool caps to visors for sun protection. Based on our research we had decided to travel clockwise around the mountain and go through the boulder field first to navigate it with fresh legs.
The first few miles of the Loowit trail is through a boulder field that is navigated by poles; sight one hike to it, sight the next one hike to it. It is slow moving. From the boulder field the trail turns forested and drops 1,600 feet to the Toutle River which is about a third of the way around. At the Toutle River we filled up our water bladders (treated it with iodine), snacked, applied more sun screen and admired the views.
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| looking down at the Toutle River |
From the Toutle River the trail is wide open and exposed to the elements, the trail drops in and out of canyons until the blast zone. We made pretty good time - stopping to admire the views periodically.
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| Hiking out from the Toutle River |
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| west side wide open trail - heading north to the blast zone |
The blast zone landscape was spectacular, I slowly ran through the flat rocky landscape wishing that we had another day to explore the waterfalls and take in the amazing science fiction landscape. From the blast zone the trail goes up to Windy Pass, the highest point in the trail elevation 4,950 feet and about two thirds of the way around the mountain. Before you get to Windy Pass there is a good place to refill your water - we waited until Ape Cave, this was a mistake because the water source there had dried up since late August and I ended up finishing the hike without water.
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| blast zone trail marker |
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| Spirit Lake with Mt Rainier in the background |
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| Heading through the Plains of Abraham |
How lucky, no wind! Dropping down from Windy Pass to Plains of Abraham on to Ape Cave we made really good time. The trail is mostly flat and easy to navigate. Just 5 miles to June Lake trail junction from the Ape Cave trail. Based on the time we were making we started making dinner plans. A bit too optimistic - the last 5 miles is very deceptive and turned out to be our slowest of the day. The trail drops in and out of canyons and the canyons go on forever, even though it is a net down hill that last 5 miles was very, very slow going. Once we reached the June lake trail junction it was a quick downhill to the car - still light out, still smiling and ready for dinner.
More Information about running the Loowit Trail in one day:
Loowit Trail #216 route around Mt St Helens
Info on running around Mt St Helens
more info on running around Mt St Helens
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