Climbing Mount St. Helens is a benchmark experience for Pacific Northwesterners and visitors alike. Though the route gains 4,500 feet in less than five miles, it requires no special skills or equipment in the summer and early fall. This half-day hike is suitable for anyone with a moderate amount of fitness and an adventurous spirit. The following tips will walk you through the red tape, the route and all the way up to the 8,365-ft summit of an active volcano.
Reserve your permit online at the Mount St. Helens Institute for the Ptarmigan Trail #216A starting at the Climber's Bivouac. Permits are limited to 100 per day in the summer, with weekends booked months in advance. The cost is $22 per permit. Print your confirmation and present it when picking up your permit before your hike.
Plan ahead. Do a few practice hikes in your area of five miles or more. Check the weather conditions in the days preceding your climb. Visit the US Forest Service Mount St. Helens webpage for any updates on volcanic activity. Decide whether you will camp at the trailhead or arrive the morning of your hike. It is best to hit the trail as early as possible to give yourself plenty of time---dawn is not too early.
Pick up your permit at the Lone Fir Resort in Cougar, Washington, where all climbers are also required to register by signing the log book. If you are camping at the Climber's Bivouac to get an early start on your climb, your permit will be available one day in advance after 9 a.m. Alternately, you can pick it up on the morning of your hike when the resort opens at 6 a.m.
Leaving the town of Cougar on Highway 503, follow the signs for the Climber's Bivouac. Turn left on FR 83, and then again on FR 81/830. At the trailhead, you will find ample parking and solar toilets, but no potable water.
The climb to the summit can be broken into three sections. In the first portion, you will climb gradually for two miles through a canopy of old-growth forest. Mosquitoes can be a problem here. Eventually, you will pass a solar outhouse, your last for the duration of this climb.
Once above the treeline, you'll see Monitor Ridge snaking up the south side of the volcano. Your path up the ridge is marked by wooden cairns sticking up from the rocks. The climb becomes increasingly difficult as you scramble through a boulder field towards a small weather monitoring station.
Although the third portion of the climb is a long, slow slog through ankle-deep scree, you're within view of the crater rim and its spectacular views of Mount Rainier, Mount Adams, Goat Rocks Wilderness, Spirit Lake, and the steaming crater itself. Once you've taken plenty of pictures on the rim, treat yourself to a "summit nap" and begin the descent.
