Partnership helps WTA get more done for Mount St. Helens trails

For 15 years, WTA has worked with and alongside the Mount St. Helens Institute (MSHI), and we’ve been complementing each other’s work from the beginning. From some of our earliest collaborations on the Volcano View Trail to an exciting project at the Johnston Ridge Observatory planned for this summer, we’ve been making it easier for hikers to experience the dynamic landscape around Mount St. Helens.

The real power of this partnership lies in the variety of skills and expertise that we each bring to the table, paired with our shared missions to be good stewards of the land. WTA’s extensive experience with trail work combined with MSHI’s comprehensive educational and interpretive programming covers more ground than each organization might on its own.

• The Mount St. Helens Institute
• Since 1966, the Mount St. Helens Institute has worked to educate the public on the volcano and the surrounding Gifford Pinchot National Forest through programming — like its outdoor school and guided adventures — and volunteer opportunities. Learn more about their work at mshinstitute.org.

“Together, we’ve built community and connection to public land. We strengthen and expand our individual volunteer communities into a larger, more engaged community,” said Abi Groskopf, MSHI’s programs director.

Building the Volcano View Trail (initially called the Ape Cave Viewpoint Trail) was one of the first projects we teamed up on. Both WTA and MSHI completed many work parties over a couple of years to turn the former road into a trail. These days, the trail offers hikers a short hike that weaves through trees and boulders to a vista of the south side of the volcano.

The Volcano View Trail was officially opened in 2014. Photo from WTA Archives. 

“Pooling our resources, knowledge and skills has increased the amount of work we can do at the Mount St. Helens National Monument,” said Ryan Ojerio, WTA’s Southwest regional manager. “Our joint work parties give WTA volunteers a chance to learn all about MSHI’s programs and vice versa — it's a real fruitful cross-pollination (pardon the pun)!”

• Get involved
• Join WTA and MSHI on trail this summer July 19–21! Sign up for any of the days or all of them, if you’re hoping to camp out in the beautiful Mount St. Helens area. Projects will include clearing the trail corridor, fixing the trail’s walking surface and clearing drains. And every night, you’ll enjoy good company at camp, listen to guest speakers and share s’mores.

Several years later, in the mid-2010s, WTA and MSHI further merged our trail work by making work parties in the monument a co-venture between both organizations. Combining work parties made our work easier and more effective because we no longer had to plan around each other and could coordinate to avoid duplicating efforts.

Over the next several years, MSHI will be taking on a redevelopment and renovation of the Science and Learning Center at Coldwater, near the Johnston Ridge Observatory. One aspect of the huge undertaking involves designing — and eventually building— a trail system connecting the center to other nearby trails, and WTA is excited to join forces with MSHI on this part of their project. This year, WTA will be scouting potential trail connections and passing along a plan to the Forest Service, with the hopes of starting trail construction within the next few years. Projects like these require a large amount of trust from both sides, which we have built over many years, and WTA is looking forward to continuing to work with MSHI.

Photo by WTA staff. 

“Since merging trail work efforts, MSHI offers diverse volunteer opportunities for WTA volunteers connected to Mount St. Helens, and MSHI offers continued learning opportunities,” Abi said. “We have also been able to focus our efforts on what we do well — education and interpretation — and allow WTA to shine in what WTA has done well: build and maintain trails.”