Hiker Joseph Bohlig dies after falling into volcano [Mt. St. Helens, WA]

Herald and Weekly Times ^ | Wednesday, February 17, 2010 | Staff Report

[Star Traveler]

I didn't get anything on that link, but I was able to get it back to this page...

Mount St. Helens VolcanoCams
http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/volcanocams/msh/

[Star Traveler]

You were saying ...

Three months after the eruption I came off the interstate and drove to the red zone. There was a road sign for Toutle(I think) and Spirit Lake with the distance to each. Spirit Lake had been painted out in green paint.

You must have been driving along the Toutle River Highway then, because that's the one that would take one to Spirit Lake. And that's the road that would have had the mud flows down it and houses buried in the mud flows.

But, I would imagine that at just three months afterwards, that area where houses were buried, would not have been dug out yet and the road would have been covered, too... so you probably didn't see that, at that time.

Later on, though, after it had been dug out a bit, you could drive down the Toutle River Highway and see those houses that had been buried and also see the mud marks, high up on the trees, showing that it had gotten pretty high, as it came down the river.

Now, when you drive down that road to Johnston Ridge Observatory, the highway has been relocated to higher ground (as the original highway would have been totally buried that far along, as you get closer to the mountain.

Here's a link to the highway and the mileage markers, all the way to Johnston Ridge Observatory.

On the way up there, on the new relocated highway to Johnston Ridge, you cross this bridge -- the Hoffstadt Creek Bridge. I just thought it made a nice picture. I've got a few of those that I've taken, too... :-)

Here's an interesting page... Washington 504: Spirit Lake Memorial Highway

[Star Traveler]

Well, that was fortunate for him..., but not so for the other guy.

[Rebelbase]

Yep, it was the road that runs along the Toutle River. We drove to a point where a bridge had been washed out and that was as far as the public could go. The guard rail that was exposed where the bridge had been torn out by the mud flows was buried under 5 feet of ash.

Logging trucks were coming out of the red zone and three large trees had been laid across the river and covered in ash for a bridge.

I’ll never forget seeing a very nice house untouched by the mudflows that came within feet of the foundation.

The forest blow-down was indescribable.

[Star Traveler]

Some Cornices (overhanging snow) on the Crater Rim of Mount St. Helens

Cornices are unstable and prone to sudden failure.  Extreme caution is advised!  Do not approach the crater rim unless you can find a wind-scoured area where the surface of the rim is visible.  The crater rim is unstable and is subject to frequent rockfall and collapse.  Stay back from the crater edge, it is potentially hazardous at any time of year (especially during the period of elevated avalanche danger and rockfall during the spring thaw). 

[EBH]

thanks for all the pics.

interestingly beautiful.

As many will say sad story, but at 68 times....

He died doing something he loved.

[cricket]

but there’s that saying that comes to mind... about climbers... “There are old climbers and there are bold climbers, but there are no old, bold climbers”...

Lot of truth in 'old sayings'. . .

[fieldmarshaldj]

RIP.

[egannacht]

Abe played the part of the chief. The fictional islanders were a mixture of jews and druids that shipwrecked long ago. Movie is a cult classic but hated by the critics. It has a great message about life.