A trip to Mt. St. Helens

 We took a nice drive out to Mt. St. Helens.  We first stopped at the Visitors Center.  It has an interesting short film about the explosion of the volcano, mud flow and loss of life.  There are displays about the history of the region and a minute-by-minute explanation of the volcano blast.  The Center offers a great view of the side on the opposite side of the crater.  There is a pretty, short and level trail over a wetlands with red-winged blackbirds, frogs, water lilies and more.  

We had planned to drive to the Johnston Ridge Observatory, but the road was closed because of a mud slide.  We backtracked and had a nice lunch at a Mexican restaurant in Castle Rock.  Then, we drove as far as the overlook at Toutle.  From this viewpoint, it is easy to see the point of lateral blowout and the mud flow.  We backtracked to the Forest Learning Center.  This is an educational center run by the Weyerhauser Company.  It is worth a stop.  It documents the tree replanting after the explosion.