Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Day 107

Mt. St. Helens

Aug 21, 2013, 7:37 PM


We had the most wonderful day seeing Mt. St. Helens with Bob and Lori. It was so great to spend the day with people that can give you a personal perspective on the disaster that happened May 18th, 1980, when Mt. St. Helens erupted. We met them at their campground on the way to the mountain and Bob was sure to point out all of the really great picture spots and give lots of information on the devastation and the comeback of the area. 


It is so beautiful in it's current state and we got lots of pictures and as Bob and Lori would explain something to us, they would end it with "when we see the movie you'll get a better understanding", oh and they were right. We got to the Johnson Ridge Observatory and the first thing we did was see the movie on the eruption and the ecological comeback of the surrounding area. The movie shows you the moments before the blast and how the mountain that had been a peak was now very very different. Thirty three years later and there are areas that are still barren of vegetation, and other areas have come back to life. The movie explained how their was an earthquake that caused the mountain to collapse, the collapse caused a terrible landslide, then there was a blast that blew from the top and the side, then the ash cloud that went 15 miles up. When the whole thing settled down it was a completely different looking mountain. I could have sat throughout the movie several times to get a better grasp of the reality and when the movie ended the screen retracted. The curtain opened to a wall of windows and there was the mountain in all of its dramatic and deadly splendor. It is so magnificent!!!!! 


Again we had the most perfect Washington State day. It was warm, but not too warm, bright and sunny. We walked around outside getting more and more photos. It was really spectacular. Afterwards Bob and Lori treated us to a BBQ back at their camper of salmon burgers and corn on the cob. Yummy! We mapped out our plan for tomorrow's trip to the kite festival on the coast. It was such a great day, with truly wonderful friends. I can't wait to do it all again. 


Enjoy the photos. I grabbed a before photo to give you a better perspective. Have a wonderful night and I'll talk to you again tomorrow. 




Before. . .


After. . .













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