Mt St Helens

Famous for the 1980 eruption, Mt St Helens is Washington’s most active volcano. Unlike your traditional science fair volcano which blows straight out the top, Mt St Helens blew out the top and the north side. The view from the south (above) hides the damage and destruction that rained down over 40 years ago.

One of the biggest changes after the eruption was the location of the actual summit. Before 1980, Mt St Helens stood just shy of 10k ft. Today the mountain peaks at around 8.5k ft. This pales in comparison to its closest neighbor Mt Adams, which tops out at over 12k ft. Also visible from the southern slopes is Mt Hood, an 11k ft volcano across the border in Oregon.

View of Mt Adams from the slopes of St Helens

Mt Hood above the Cascades