Mount St Helens is a real treat for the retina (Mount St. Helens)

Member Name: Rosscobam

Product:	Mount St. Helens
Date:	16/06/08 (39 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Memorial; Scenery

Disadvantages: Sadness surrounding the area

On 18th May 1980, Mt. St. Helens erupted after an earthquake measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale. The composite volcano is situated in the Cascade Range of the Rocky Mountains on the east coast of America. The eruption killed 64 people, and had a lateral blast range of around 500 km. 24sqkm of forest was flattened, ruining ecosystems and causing timber supplies for the area to dwindle.
The blast caused the release of toxic pyroclasts, which were a threatening danger, which luckily didn't cause many deaths. The north face was blown off due to the build-up of pressure caused by magma flow in the volcano. Much of the Mount St. Helens National Park was closed for some time, but has since been re-opened and has attracted more and more tourists to see the remains of the volcano. I would reccomend a visit as it is an area of outstanding beauty, with truly beautiful scenery. It is sobering to look at Mount St. Helens, and think how bad the disaster could have been. Definitely worth a visit.

Summary: Worth a respectful visit