St. Helens has never failed to amaze me with its gorgeous view both on the trail and at the crater rim. Today is by far the most beautiful day I had here. We had an awesome day with a great group. Everyone were prepared mentally and gear wise (actually, overprepared cause we were extra cautious). Everyone was self motivated, and motivating, powering each other thru the hike. Loved the group!!! 

Driving

We arrived 9:45pm the day before. Most of us slept in the car, and some set up tent next to the car.

No parking permit was needed since April this year. You might find multiple websites that mention a date after which no parking permit is needed. It changes from year to year; make sure to call ranger to double check. 

Gear

Mountaineering boots OR hiking boots with crampons

Gaiters

Hat (with long brim and cape)

Gloves

Trekking poles

Ice axe with leash

Sunscreen

Lip balm w/ SPF

Glacier glasses

The rest of 10 essentials not mentioned above

* We carried crampons and snowshoes (based on my experience here 2 weeks ago, when both were required), but did not use either. 

** Gaiters were absolutely a must for glissading, especially in wet and slushy snow. I did without, got ice in my boots, regretted every second of it, and spent a week drying my boots :(

Hike

Started 5:15am, and summitted 11:30am (took snacks and photo breaks in between), and back to car ~3pm.

We tried to register at the trailhead registrar, but all the pages in the book were filled, so we couldn't. But normally you register your entire party (everyone's name, expected return time, car info) before the hike, and after the hike, you come back to write down the actual return time.

Snow was already soft when we started. We managed with mountaineering boots all the way. No many people used snowshoes, and they looked like an overkill to me (too bulky, not providing much help). The entire trail was well beaten down with deep boot paths, and easy to follow. We used trekking poles. Every time I turned back to see the path we just came up from, I was amazed by how beautiful it was. 

I was surprised by how much snow has melt in the last 2 weeks. At just over 4,000 ft, where I skipped with my snowshoes in a kinda icy part last time, it was already exposed with rocks and ashes. Loose ashes were particularly unpleasant. Occasionally people ahead of you yelled 'rock' because of the small rocks they tried to hold on to avalanched down. Thank god it lasted for just ~15 minutes. Someone of us even took a detour in the deep snow to avoid it. I'd rather posthole in the snow than slipping in the sand. 

We stayed at the summit for about an hour to embrace the view and take pictures. Luckily it was too windy there. Didn't go to the true summit, and didn't see many people going either, because the cornices looked sketchy. 

Glissading was definitely the highlight. We glissaded all the way from the summit to around 4,800ft, where there is a sign that says climbing permit is required beyond this point! We only had to stand up a few times to move to a chute nearby to continue. Most of time you naturally glissading from one chute to another. The glissading started with a deeper chute that had a sudden drop. Many people managed with trekking poles, but I'd be extra cautions and bring an ice axe. Later it had a few sudden drops here and there. But nothing too scary. Overall the chutes were well defined - deep and straightforward enough that you can see obviously where it leads to. 

The way I attached snowshoes to my pack made it catch too much ice, which made my glissading go way slower. Sometime I wasn't even going anywhere lol. Other times I was waiting for the people behind me to give me a little momentum. 

Just be aware of where you are going to. People have created too many chutes that can potentially confuse you and make you think you can literally go anywhere. Don't simply follow people. When you approach 4,800ft, there are 2 chutes that lead to 2 gullies, on both sides of path with exposed rocks and dirt. Stick to the left one (from the perspective of looking down hill), because the right chute will lead you to continue in the summer route. We ended up at the right (as with many other people), stood up, crossed the rocky path, and continued on the other side. 

Ski

Lots of skiers also seemed to have a great time. A note from a friend who skiied that day, in case you are wondering what the condition was like:

"Skiing was really fun. There were some challenging steep sections, but we kept the skis on the whole time. We skied to within .75 miles of the parking lot then hit too much dirt to continue. I recommend carefully choosing route based on avy terrain. Snow was soft. No ski crampons needed."

This was our first time on an actual mountain, and although we didn't quite make it to the top, it was still a fun day. We got to within about a mile of the summit, when the slope gets considerably steeper than the lower parts. It was about 10 in the morning and the slope was still icy enough that kicking in steps was very difficult. We didn't have crampons, so it was almost impossible to walk. We spent a while hanging onto our ice axes while kicking in small steps, but eventually we turned around. Perhaps later in the day it would be doable without crampons, but getting an early start is also a good idea because it makes the beginning part way easier. Glissading down was super fun! This was my first time learning to self arrest and control myself while glissading down, and it was a good place to learn. Ice axes are definitely necessary. Also, snowshoes are necessary once things warm up and the snow gets soft. Starting around one in the afternoon we were post holing enough that walking was basically impossible without snowshoes. It's a good beginner mountain to climb, and I'm hoping to be back to get to the top at some point!

Well, what a day. This hike is definitely hard. The hike up is just up and up and up. The conditions were pretty variable today. Most of the time it was just cloudy. Sometimes some lower clouds would roll in and dump some snow. Wind was also a factor. Other times the sun/blue sky would peek through for a bit. I used snowshoes all the way up. My partner used crampons all the way up. Both of those worked for us. We also had an ice axe but only used that going down. We climbed without trekking poles but they would have been helpful especially towards the top. As expected it was crowded. We were only alone for some stretches of the hike through the woods at the beginning. Last stretch to the summit is brutal but worth it. Lots of false summits. We were treated with about 10 minutes of sun above the clouds at the summit. Very cool views but unfortunately could not see Adams or Rainier. 

Glissading down was a blast! First time for me and it was awesome. Just sat down and used my hands and feet to stop if needed. People had already made some great chutes for us to use. So satisfying after all the hard work to get to the top. Partner used the ice axe to brake but my hands and feet worked fine. Snow was well packed in the morning but by 1 the snow was super soft- pay attention to this going over some of the rocks. What was stable going up might be precarious coming down after a semi-sunny day. By 2-3 we were down the mountain but post holing quite a bit- our shoes and socks were soaked by the time we got back to the car even with gaiters. My partner's rain pants got a little torn up by crampons so be aware of that. Gaiters should be fine to avoid that. 

We were also dumb and forgot sunglasses/sunscreen. Our faces are fried and very uncomfortable. Even though it was cloudy the sun will still reflect off the snow. Be smarter than us! I would recommend some sort of SPF face covering (like a buff or other mask) and a (secured- don't want the wind to blow it away) hat to go along with your sunglasses. I doubt sunscreen would be enough even with reapplication. 

Overall very long and satisfying day. The trek up can be demoralizing and brutal but it is well worth it! Especially if the sun is out. Be ready for all conditions as they change quickly. Started at 6:25 am, summit at 12:30 (with quite a few breaks), back to car at 3:45. Highly recommend glissading. We saw some people camping in the parking lot and some on the snow just past the tree line- these might be good ideas for people wanting to get an earlier start on the climb. 

Took a spin up Mt. St. Helens on Thursday, clear and relatively hot conditions.  Snow begins at the TH, and on this day did not really freeze up ON.  Conditions fairly unpleasant to the ridge, with postholing and just general inconsistencies. On the ridge, the wind picked up a bit which made for better snow.  This didn't last long, the upper slog was again inconsistent.  Carried the snowshoes up, lol. . . .  Regardless, it was a beautiful day in the neighborhood and not having been here in 20+ years, spectacular to see it was still spectacular.  Mash potatoes on the way out. 

#medicaremountaineers 

Crampons/snowshoes/axe

Got to the trailhead around midnight the night before. By the time i got going at 630am many folks had already begun the trek. There is snow all the way to the top and some form of spikes/poles, snowshoes or skis will be needed. The snow was very soft after days of sunshine and I found snowshoes were needed for the entire journey. Some switched to crampons during the summit but had to deal with significant post holing given the soft snow. It made for a quite the slog up and down regardless of the gear used.

The route up is fairly straight forward (just follow the tracks) and be sure to stop and take a bearing of your surroundings (looking backwards) from time to time as it will help with navigating your descent. The crater rim has a large cornice and you should stay 15-20 feet back from the edge. If you're not skiing, bring an ice axe and take advantage of a few chutes for glissading down.

I got back to the TH at 4PM.