St. Helens Snow Conditions?

[Mic_Rocky]

Hey, anyone been up Mt. St. Helens recently? It looks like a few have. What are the snow conditions like? I'm thinking of skiing on Sunday. I've been up twice before and looked like generally there is pretty low avalanche potential. Anyone else got advice on the avy conditions up there. I'll be going up the Worm Flows route. That is if the road from Cougar is fixed.

[sketchfest]

You're going to have a tough time getting there. The dam above lake Merwin broke earlier this week and washed out the road. The only way in is an additional 50 mile trip through logging roads and I'm not sure the local authorities have the detour complete yet. You might be able to get some more info off of one of the news channel sites.

[Walter_Burt]

Mic,

Snow stability as of today should be solid. Rain/snow is forecast for today and tomorrow - a good dump could change that, especially if it gets warm on Sunday. Plan on windslab over crust at least - nice edge-grabbing stuff.

[Mic_Rocky]

Thanks people for the information. Yeah, I'll call down to that local restraunt (Jacks?) near Cougar today and see about the road condition.

[tomtom]

One Lane of SR 503 Spur near Cougar Set to Open Friday

 

Updated: 4/25/02

 

COUGAR - One lane of the State Route 503 Spur east of the town of Cougar will open to traffic by the end of the day on Friday, April 26 - in time for the start of fishing season, announced the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT).

 

Approximately 200 feet of the SR 503 Spur (at milepost 39) was washed away last Sunday after a breach in the Swift Power Canal. A pilot car will guide traffic across the new roadway one direction at a time until Monday, at which time WSDOT will re-evaluate how to handle traffic control through the area.

 

Informational signs are posted at the junction of Interstate 5 (I-5) and SR 503 (Woodland) and at the junction of SR 503 and the SR 503 Spur (Cougar Junction). At the Cowlitz/Skamania county line, the SR 503 Spur ends and National Forest Service Road 90 begins, leading into the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. An additional informational sign has been placed at the junction of State Route 14 and National Forest Service Road 90 (Carson).

[Pumice_Pounder]

The road is open, I've driven it several times lately. In fact, I'm gonna drive over it in about an hour. The hole in the levy, and the damaged powerhouse are interesting to see.

You're right, the slide potential is generally low. But don't be lulled into a false sense of security by the apparently gentle terrain, or by people who tell you there isn't any risk. Slides can and do occur on and near the Worm Flows Route almost every spring.

[znep]

Both photos are from April 29th at St. Helens. That was a glorious day.

 

On Avalanches: hey, why not just be crushed by a giant chunk of snow instead? Of course, you may be just as likely to have a snowobile land on your head instead.

 

 

On destroyed buildings: