Mount St. Helens - Worm Flows Route — Thursday, Jan. 1, 2015

South Cascades > Mount St. Helens

Best way to start 2015! 6:20am start at Swift Ski Trail 244. Made it to the Worm Flows trailhead about an hour later as the sun was rising. Hiked bare booted all the way to the toe of Swift Glacier and then slapped on the snowshoes to make the final accent. Some slow stretches of ice, but nothing the snowshoe crampons couldn't handle. The view from the crater rim was worth the effort! Enjoyed snacks in the lee of the crater rim with zero wind and direct afternoon sunlight. Glacading down was easy and free of obstructions, however, a pair of skies would have made it more fun. Made it back to the car without needing a headlamp, courtesy of the nearly full moon.