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Worm Flows,
Mt. St. Helens |
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As the gorge is spectacular for daily sauntering, so is snow. It has been some time since my last romp around Mt. St. Helens National Monument, and I decided after the heavy snowfall this year to give it a go. I bought a pair of snowshoes, and came up with the 30 dollars for a snow pass. Upon arriving at the Marble Mountain Snow Park, I could not believe how much snow had fallen this year. According the the local ranger, it was a record snowfall year for the area.
The trail was nice and solid. No post holing in show shoes means a fast, easy trip. Originally, I was just planning to hike up to Chocolate Falls along swift creek. Things were going so well this morning that I decided to try my luck at at the winter climbing route to the 4800 foot area. Since I did not have a permit, I could not go any further than that.
The trail bobbed up and down. I stopped now and then to look at the contrast between rock and snow and have a think.
I was getting close to tree line as Monitor Rock came into view and things were getting a bit breezy. I donned a thermal top and continued for my prior destination of Chocolate Falls.
Chocolate Falls was not running at all as spring is the best time to see anything falling from this rock face. I passed over the falls just ahead if it and continued on to the worm flows.
Indeed we had received a lot of snow as the gullies were quite packed with the white stuff. I saw the route and headed for the ridge.
The ridge was beginning to soften in the morning sun that poked through every now and then. It began to soften enough that walking in snowshoes was becoming tedious and walking without them meant a guaranteed post hole to my waist.
The ridge steepened as I neared the 4800 foot mark. Ready to turn back, the snow was turning to slush fast.
I took a photo and headed back for the truck, contempt that my first snowshoe trip went well as planned. Things look so different in the winter time with a blanket of snow. The silence caused by such weather is very therapeutic as well.
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