The Mt St Helens Adventure Tour from Portland

Travel to Mount Saint Helens and environs, from Portland, on this ALL-INCLUSIVE tour with a guide who will discuss the geology, ecology, climate, history, and legends of the area, as well as the history of US public lands. Your guide will lead you on hikes through forests, through lava tubes, and road conditions permitting, by waterfalls. You will see some of the most unique geological features in North America, including North America's longest continuous lava tube and a lava tree mold forest. Weather permitting, you will be driven to the closest viewpoint into the crater of the volcano, where you will be provided a picnic lunch, overlooking Spirit Lake. *THIS IS A 12-HOUR TOUR*

1. 1

   Mount St. Helens

   7 hours

   Travel to Mt. St. Helens and environs with a naturalist guide who will discuss the geology, ecology, climate, history, and legends of the area, as well as the history of US public lands. Your guide will lead you on hikes near waterfalls, through lava tubes, and within oldgrowth forests. Stops both inside and outside of Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.

2. 2

   Ape Cave Lava Tubes

   1 hour

   Traverse North America's longest continuous lava tube! No matter how hot it is outside, the temperature in the cave is a constant 42F (5.5C), so bring layers. Also, be sure to bring shoes that are suitable for scrambling, and wipe those shoes before entering the bats' home so that they don't get white-nose syndrome!

3. 3

   Trail of Two Forests Trail

   20 min

   A lava mold forest. Walk through a wonderland of wells and tunnels, that's hard to pull kids away from.

4. 4

   WIndy Ridge Viewpoint

   1 hour

   Weather permitting, we'll take you to the closest viewpoint with a view into the crater that is accessible by vehicle. There you'll have a picnic lunch, and have the opportunity to burn off your lunch by ascending the 357 stairs to a 365-degree view overlooking Spirit Lake, with the mountain looming. If conditions are clear enough, you'll see four stratovolcanoes: St. Helens, Rainier, Adams, and Hood.

5. 5

   Johnston Ridge Observatory

   Pass by

   The place where Dave Johnston got on the radio and yelled "Vancouver! Vancouver! This is it!", the fateful morning of May 18, 1980.

6. 6

   Mount St. Helens Visitor Center

   Pass by

   The visitor center with the most detailed history and geology of Mt. St. Helens.

7. 7

   Lava Canyon

   Pass by

   A fairytale landscape of sapphire waterfalls and blue-grey andesite that were scoured and smoothed by the 1980 lahar resulting from the rapid melting of the Shoestring Glacier by pyroclastic flows.

8. 8

   Coldwater Ridge Visitor Center

   Pass by

   The visitor center that provides a special retro experience, with a movie about Mt. St. Helens circa 1985, and a 1990s-era Disneyland Haunted Mansion-style park ranger statue, who will give you a lecture.

• Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
• Not recommended for pregnant travelers
• Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
• Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
• This tour operates in all weather conditions, and the cave is 42F (5.5C). Please dress in layers.
• We recommend shoes that are suitable for minor rock climbing (i.e. scrambling/bouldering).

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.