Trail was sick. Started at 610. No gear necessary till chocolate falls (not flowing) then I put on my crampons and used till summit. Hardly any wind. Took a 30 min nap at the top and then started going down. On the way down post holing was bad. Once getting under permit required sign we switched to snowshoes and it was a breeze from there on. First ever summit and I enjoyed. With proper gear and physical fitness you can do it

NWAC reported low avalanche risk and we hadn’t had new snowfall in ~2 weeks. Road was perfect condition; you could reach the Marble Mountain Sno Park in a Smart Car if you needed to lol.

Slept in the sno park lot overnight (don’t forget to buy/print your parking permit for your summit day). Started hiking at 3:45 AM. There’s packed snow/ice and some patches of dirt for the first ~1.5 miles before it switches to entirely snow from there on. Micro spikes recommended. I did it without and had some #regretz.

Past the tree line, some sort of traction is helpful (see above), though crampons didn’t feel necessary except for the section from the crater to the true summit. For that section, everyone we saw wore crampons. Just wear them plz. And, this should go without saying (but I’ll say it anyways), bring your ice axe.

Conditions were pretty slick/hard until around 10:30AM, so if you’re planning to ski definitely wait to get your start until 6/7 (?) or so. Snow started to soften around 10:30 which made for some pretty idyllic glissading conditions. Forest floor was still icy/slick on the descent around 12:30-2:30 PM.

We had near perfect conditions with perfectly clear skies, wind 0-10 mph, temps ranging in the 20s and low 30s.

Car to car took just under 11 hours with some long luxurious snack breaks.

Terrifying to have conditions like this in January (the climate anxiety is real), but I guess the climbing was at least epic and beautiful?

Beautiful weather past couple days, forecast good, NWAC reported low avalanche danger, recent trip reports checked out : time to strike.

Disclaimer: I got a later start than I wanted due to very little sleep, was slower than anticipated going up, and I didn’t realize the “true summit” where you get views of Rainier and Spirt Lake was a bit more distance from where I had settled down when first getting to top of the crater rim. Despite being a pretty easy traverse with mild up/down climbers left along the rim to true summit, I was pretty gassed already by then and wanted to get down before dark, so didn’t get to tag the true summit. I had seen enough pretty stuff already, so was fine with it and will get it another day. Also since it’s winter, conditions can change a lot more rapidly, so keep that in mind with conditions described here.

Drive to Marble Mountain Sno-park (can get a parking permit online) was in very good condition. 1 or 2 potholes/dips, but paved, clear of snow, and wasn’t really that icy when I drove up early morning in the dark. I did hit an icy patch when I left in the afternoon funny enough where lost brief control, so awareness still necessary. Sedans should be able to make it. Bathrooms are open, but bring your own toilet paper.

Weather forecast had blue skies, temps in the low 40s around summit, and wind gusts from 15-20 mph. Only got wind in the middle of the hike. Top was surprisingly very calm. Warmed up very fast and lots of sweat midday with snow sun reflections. Make sure to bring enough water and electrolytes.

In terms of gear, I brought snowshoes, microspikes, one trekking pole, ice ax, and helmet. Ended up not using snowshoes, but peace of mind in having them was worth it. I was too lazy to put them on, and may have been good to wear them going down because of all the post holing, but it was a tough call, because then wouldn’t be able to do glissades intermittently. I debated bringing semi automatic crampons, but recent reports I read had people seem to do fine with just microspikes. I did see plenty of people use crampons and snowshoes.

Morning snow was firm enough that microspikes gave decent traction for me. Stair step boot path already beaten in some sections was nice. With my late start, afternoon sun had turned snow into soft mashed potatoes. No matter how compacted I tried to find terrain on the way down, I would sink to my upper thigh in some places when stepping. Was slipping around a lot and it was tiring. Glissading chutes were peppered throughout and could jump in and out depending on steepness and bare rock proximity. Skiers coming down seemed to be able to navigate terrain fine. A lot of the Worm Flows route up as navigated with my GPS would parallel a lot of bare rock, so could have your choice of walking on snow or scrambling on boulders if you wanted.

Crater rim area is marked with orange flags serving as warnings to not go past due to cornice instability.

Views on such a bluebird day were fantastic. Didn’t expect clouds in forecast, but was high enough to be above cloud layer in some far away distances. Plenty of people were out and a lot had an even later start than I did.

625 AM : start at Marble Mountain Sno-Park

745 AM : chocolate falls (dry now)

1210 PM : crater rim area top

1255 PM : start descent

305 PM : back at chocolate falls

355 PM : end

Spring like conditions on Mt. St. Helens today. Road to parking lot snow free.  Couple rough spots to be careful about but otherwise passable for low clearance vehicles. Bathrooms missing TP so bring your own. 

Started at 5 AM.  Parking lot crowded but able to get a spot in the main parking lot.  Snow spotty for 1st 1/2 mile but then became continuous afterwards.  Overall snow level is low with many bare spot visible.  We brought snow shoes but did not need them on way up since snow was firm in the morning and there was a nice boot pack to summit.  Views were spectacular today with Mt. Baker, Mt Jefferson, the Olympics, and North Cascades visible. There are orange wand marking where cornice starts. We were able to glissade down to the weather station.  Afterwards the hike down was strenuous due to post-holing from soft snow. Snow shoes were helpful on the way down.   

Turned around at ~7500ft. Adding this trip report because 1) there aren't many in general for the November shoulder season, and 2) I lost a pair of rain pants at ~7500ft.

Six hours drive from Seattle in traffic. The gate to the main lot of Marble Mtn Sno-Park (elev ~2600') is closed, but the overflow lot is open and snow-free. As a party of three, we camped there in light to moderate rain, and had the whole place to ourselves save two cars that had arrived later in the night.

Having studied but never hiked this route before, and beginning in the dark with fog and iffy viz, it was helpful for route finding to see a few retroreflectors that are prominently placed on the route near Chocolate Falls. 

The route is totally snow-free until you reach the uppermost slopes. Footing below the snowline, above treeline is variable; depending on where exactly you choose to walk and how high up you are, you cross boulders, very loose scree, some kind of volcanic sand, mud, before you get to the snow. On the way down, highly recommend gaiters unless you want to stop frequently to shake pebbles out of your boots, and beware that it is easy to dislodge large rocks onto anyone that might be below.

Patches of snow off-route appear starting 5500' or so, larger snowfields begin a little above 6000', but rock ridges remain snow-free until 6800' or so, at which point the snow is still navigable without traction, and/or crossing between rock ribs across small gullies containing ~2-5in of snow presents no problems. The rocks on the ridge begin to be plastered with ice on their downward side around 7200', and the rocks end around 7400', giving way to mandatory snowfield travel. The snow surface there, at ~9:45am, was somewhat soft, but slippery enough and steep enough to present a hazard. I began carrying my ice axe in hand around 7200', and decided to put on crampons at 7400'. My two partners put on microspikes here and appeared to be able to make upward progress.

We made it just a little ways up this snowfield to ~7500', just below the junction with Monitor Ridge, before deciding to turn around in the face of steadily worsening conditions including the return of poor visibility (route finding would be a concern for us), higher winds, precip (we were all some degree of wet despite our gear), and issues with a borrowed pair of crampons (mea culpa - always be familiar with your gear before you go out). 

Shortly after turning around, maybe 7400', my helmet became detached from my pack, and rolled down the snow gully and out of sight. Fortuitously it arced and ended up back on route a ways below. However I had my pair of trusty black REI GoreTex rain pants balled up inside it (which I had taken off earlier, had gotten too warm despite some continued sleet falling), and these vanished somewhere in the gully. You are unlikely to find them, but if you do, email me at mwstubna@hotmail.com.

We did a lot of things well on this hike, had excess water, extra layers, stayed together, managed the elevation gain and rain lower down just fine, we just made the judgment that the combination of worsening conditions and traction issues made it potentially hazardous to continue. On descent, we enjoyed a longer break at the weather station (?) at ~5700' - I had my MSR mini stove in my day pack, and REALLY enjoyed being able to make hot instant coffee. There may be a reason why so few people seem to attempt the route this time of year - be prepared, be safe, and enjoy the adventure.