As I continue my Cascade Mountain series, I couldn’t forget Mt. St Helens (Also known as Lawetlat’la, Loowit, and Louwala-Clough). It’s best known for its massive eruption on May 18, 1980, but it was highly active prior, and remains the most active volcano in the range. Though the eruption was a few years before my time, I still remember my aunt’s stories of ash covered cars all the way down in Southern California. The spread of impact seemed unreal. Annoyingly, I also associate St Helens with that terrible 97’ Pierce Brosnan movie Dante’s Peak. Remember that scene where the grandma wades into the acidified lake? Woof.
All this time living in the PNW and I’ve never visited St Helens, though it’s now made the list, especially after seeing videos like these of the doable (albeit strenuous) day hike to the top (These guys even skied down it!). How many active volcanoes can you really do that on?
I chose a vertical orientation for this Mt. St Helens map, as I wanted to feature as much of the northern side of the peak, eruption and landside site, along with at least a bit of Spirit Lake to the northeast. I made sure to label features wherever I could, including trails, like the Loowit trail that circles the peak, and both of the major summit routes, Monitor Ridge and Worm Flows (the winter route). The model shows 5,600’ of elevation across 109 square miles. The 15 layers of 1/8” baltic birch plywood each represent 400’ of elevation (1:39,087 scale).
The Mt. St Helens wood topographic map is currently available made-to-order in both 15x20” and 8x10” sizes, framed in a selection of handmade hardwood frames. It is also available as a 13x12" unframed peak model, ready to mount on the wall.