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Mount St Helens Visitor Center
3029 Spirit Lake Hwy
Castle Rock, WA 98611
(360) 247-3903
Castle Rock, WA 98611
(360) 247-3903
4 reviews for Mount St Helens Visitor Center
I have decided to write about Mount St. Helens National Park as my 100th Yelp review because of its spiritual place in my heart.
Mount St. Helen's erupted on May 18, 1980 - my 7th birthday. Over 50 people were killed, including Harry Truman - the keeper of Spirit Lake Lodge. The lodge is no longer but the spirit of the lake and all those that died is still eerily present.
This trip was unique and worthwhile. We took a helicopter ride to the crater (see future review) and absolutely recommended. We entered from the west side via Spirit Lake Hwy on the first day; starting at the Visitor's Center and ending at Johnston Conservatory. Our second day we visited the east side and saw Spirit Lake as well as the skeleton of the charred forest.
This National Park is very well done. Take the time to go through the museum at the Visitor's Center. The newspaper archive will make the hair on your neck stand up. Make sure you watch the movie at Johnston's Ridge.
My visit here made me appreciate how powerful Mother Nature is and humbled me in this huge world.
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Lots of information about Mount St Helens! Awesome exhibits. Handicap accessible. Beautiful sights to see when you're there on a clear day. There is also a walking path. Highly recommended!
I visited Mount St. Helens for the first time back around 1989. I remember the landscape was barren and still charred from the volcano eruption that occurred in May 1980. When I visited again in 2006, quite a bit of the trees and grass had grown back, but there were still lots of blackened tree stumps. I recommend driving through the park, as it is evidence of both the beauty and power of Mother Nature.
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Overall: Well worth the visit, truly awesome!
I was unfortunately a little too young to fully comprehend the blast at Mount St. Helens in 1980, so when we were in this area we had to visit the monument itself.
On visiting Mount St. Helens for the second time, it is as awesome as ever! The visitor center near Castle Rock has a gift shop, video and educational exhibits emphasizing the 1980 eruption. The entrance was $1.50 per adult in this area and the entrance for both Coldwater and Johnston Ridge costs $8.00 per adult.
It is worth the effort driving an additional ~40-45 miles to Coldwater Ridge and then a further 9 miles to Johnston Ridge (when roads are open). It is only Coldwater Ridge which has a restaurant facility. It isn't great but it has the usual "junk" food (burgers/fries/hotdogs), tea, coffees, iced drinks, cookies etc with the ambiance being one of an extremely dated eatery.
Miles before approaching the Johnston Observatory the blast zone is marked with a road sign and from that point the route is littered with charred tree stumps together with huge areas that are bare with no or very little growth even after 27 years after the 1980 eruption.
Walking around Johnston Ridge is amazing. Mount St. Helens represents something of true awe and beauty, yet underlying is something potentially catastrophic. I could not help standing there and observing it with immense respect for nature itself. I also spotted two tiny ground squirrels scurrying around searching for food on what appeared to the human eye as a bare wasteland. There are some shrubs, trees and plants which have grown back and this monument allows for nature to take its course in repairing the land - that is, nature is allowed to develop the way it has for millions of years.
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