Lava Canyon Mt St Helens

Laurie and I finally had a chance to make it up to" Lava Canyon " on the Southwest side of Mt St Helens. Last year, road #83 was closed due to slides. I can highly recommend the Lava Canyon area near Mt St Helens if you are looking for a short interesting hike and breathtaking views of the South side of the mountain. The parking area is well kept and will accommodate approximately 25 cars. Expect this area to be crowded during periods of nice summer weather. There are toilets here that look nice, although the forest service doesn’t see the need to have them pumped regularly…yuck

The trail starts out as an interpretive trail that is partially paved and wheelchair friendly. I wouldn’t recommend small children to this area if you plan on making the loop hike as there are many areas that have sheer drop-offs and several deaths have been reported in the area. I have pictured here a very cool well built suspension bridge that is fun to cross and affords great views of the canyon below. The " Loop Trail " is relatively short about 1 mile. There are other options that will allow a longer hike, up to 6 miles if you are looking for more exercise, just take Lave Canyon trail #184.

If time permits after your visit you have the option to continue on 52 more miles up to Hurricane Ridge and the visitor center to take in more grand vistas of this ominous mountain.. To get to Lava Canyon- Driving Directions: From the town of Cougar, drive east on Forest Road 90 just 1 mile beyond the Swift Dam, and turn left (north) onto FR 83. Drive 12 miles to the road end and you will see the nice paved parking area. * Note- Lava Canyon is 10 miles east of the turn-off for Ape caves..

Panther Creek Falls Review and Directions

Panther Creek Falls



Panther Creek Falls

Panther Creek Falls really must be seen in person, a photograph really doesn’t do it justice. To find these falls traveling from the Portland area simply cross the Bridge of the Gods,( a $1.00 toll bridge) or you may prefer to head east on Washington’s hwy 14 until you reach the town of Carson. Head north on the wind river Highway for 5.9 miles then turn right on Old State Road follow this road for a short while until you see signs for Panther Creek Campground. You will now be heading north on Panther Creek Road. Follow this road for 7.3 miles passing the campground along the way. There isn’t signage for the falls however just pull off and park in a large gravel turnout on the right side of the road. You will find the trail on the opposite side of the turnout about 200 yards downstream from your car. The falls can be heard almost immediately and the upper viewing platform can be reached in just 300 yards. Finding a way down to the base of the falls is quite possible but it's very steep terrain. I happened across a knotted climbing rope that a previous hiker had left that greatly improved my safety getting down.

If you start your day early enough there will be time to bag another nearby waterfall named Fall Creek Falls. Located another 10 miles up the Wind River Highway. These falls do require a more robust hike of 1.75 miles each way. 

Fall Creek Falls

Mt Rainier Waterfall Photography

Snoquera Falls

Day two of our mini vacation was packed with hiking and driving. We left our hotel in Sumner Washington and proceeded east on the 410 through Enumclaw on the heading for Mt Rainier and beyond. The goal for me was to bag a couple of waterfalls that I had recently found out about and then post on the website. I told Laurie that there would be no hiking and that both falls have roadside viewpoints.The 410 becomes "Mather Memorial Highway" and we eventually came to the Skookum falls turnout. All I had was 200mm focal length I could have used 300 more effectively but I went to work setting up a shot and trying to find a worthwhile composition. As you can tell by the lack of a posted image of Skookum falls I wasn’t altogether happy with my results.

Only ½ mile past Skookum was the trailhead for the much anticipated
Snoquera Falls. After some additional reading of my notes on the falls I realized there would be a short hike involved including elevation gain. Laurie as is almost always the case agreed to make the hike with me even though she was feeling ill with a chest cold. The greatest wife a man could ask for is one that wants to see her husband’s happiness and is willing to sometimes forgo here own misgivings so that we can pursue an interest that we may be so passionate about.

The trail up to the falls can be misleading at first because of two sections that have multiple forks that are unmarked. Fortunately I had great notes. A few switchbacks later we rounded the corner to see the magnificent site that is Snoquera Falls. My favorite shot was taken right from the trail and is literally the first glimpse a hiker will see of the falls. I proceeded to get closer to the falls and ascended the terraced rocks below the falls in order to get up close and personal for my second series of images.

The rest of the day consisted of driving up and over Chinook Pass with grand views of Rainier and beyond. Coming off the mountain we headed east and were flanked on our right side by the picturesque Naches River. We drove into Yakima and finally stopped in for dinner at Miner Famous Burgers Nothing special and darned expensive, $ 27.50 for two burger baskets with shakes, WOW!!

Wind Turbines

On the road again we linked up with hwy 97 south and proceeded to Goldendale Washington. The Wind turbines caught our eye so out came the camera for a couple of photos.

Finally we reached Oregon and I-84. We filled up in Hood River then continued south up Hwy 35 towards Govt. Camp and beyond. The sun was fading fast at this point and the sky looked angry. I was hoping to get a dramatic sunset shot from the Trillium lake vantage point. The clouds never did cooperate and the photo gods didn’t smile on us so we headed for home, reaching Clackamas approximately 11:00 pm.

I would say we had a full day and a nice mini vacation together.