Loowit Trail (Mt St Helens) in early July – Advice needed

[Al K]

I am in the beginning stages of considering/planning a backpack over July 4th time. I would be flying cross country into Portland and could start hike around 1:30PM from the Climbers Bivouac Campground/Trailhead on the south side. Could start in either direction, and setup camp about 8 miles in. Next day would be get to blast zone and hike across it (as no camping allowed) – I figure about 12 miles. Third day about 10 miles back to Climbers Bivouac. 4th day – summit via Monitor Ridge.

I have a few questions so far:

– is snow usually not a problem at beginning of July? I use trekking poles and could bring microspikes if needed

– do I need to bring a rope (not that I know how to use at his point)? I saw some references that they are usually provided by some steep washout sections.

– road to Climbers Bivouac looks like its fine for a normal sedan rental – please confirm.

– seems a permit would need to be booked at June 1st 7:00 AM Pacific Time for a July summit; how hard are these to snag? Unfortunately, I would probably be booking a flight first.

– I see water can be an issue. I imagine less so beginning of July due to snow melt. Would I still need to strategize for water sourcing and silt treatment?

– Go clock wise or counter?

– any other advice / considerations?

thank you in advance for any replies!

[DWR D]

Amount of snow is hard to forecast at this point as the biggest storms may be yet to come.

[Jerry Adams]

oregonhikers.org has trip reports about that

permits to climb mt st helens are difficult to get, more people than available permits

monitor ridge is a walk up.  Maybe ice axe and possibly crampons.  Probably Katoola are okay, or nothing.

July 4 is pretty early snow wise, still lots of snow.  Might be impossible to drive to trailhead.  I think August and September are better for cascade alpine areas.

Another nice place to backpack adjacent is Mt Margaret back country

[BlackHatGuy]

https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/loowit

 

[lisa r]

In 2016 I did it July 4th weekend and didn’t have snow, caught peak wildflowers so snow had been gone for at least several weeks by then. Of course, every year is different, but the Loowit Trail never climbs all that high, hovering I believe around the 4800′ mark, and a lot of it isn’t under trees so it melts out reasonably early.

That time of year I wouldn’t anticipate issues finding water, but you do need to be aware of where the good water sources are so you can plan for them. The Toutle and streams on the north side can be silty but I haven’t run into issues with that (planning to collect most of the day’s water in the morning may help alleviate some of the siltiness that comes with snowmelt). The spring on the north side that you’ll see written about is glorious. I’ve also been able to get water on the south side of Windy Pass, but I wouldn’t necessarily count on that.

The north side of the S Fork Toutle River usually has a rope (you can probably confirm this with the Forest Service once the season starts). One of the other stream gullies may also be a bit of a challenge and could have a rope, but I don’t think I’d bother bringing one.

I liked starting from June Lake and going clockwise, that way you get a lot of the lava fields out of the way rather than saving them for the end. I think if you start from Climber’s bivy, you might consider going counterclockwise, so you’re not doing the lava field at the end of your last day (which is what happened my first time around the mountain and that was a draining way to end the trip).

I would expect July 4 weekend to be pretty busy out there, fyi. In addition to backpackers the loop has gotten pretty popular with runners who like to tempt fate doing it in a day with naught but a wind shirt and life straw. That’ll also be a very competitive time to be trying to get a climbing permit, so you’ll want to be on your computer and ready to click go as soon as the permit window opens. I don’t know how quickly they sell out, but I’d imagine it’s very quick for July 4 weekend.

Have fun!

 

[Link .]

. Loowit Trail Loop – Mount St. Helens Backpacking Guide .

[Tom M]

We climbed this June 21st,2019 Snow wasn’t the issue it was getting a climbing permit and camping at climbers bivouac. Completely lucked out and pulled in just as someone was leaving and snagged there tent spot and proceeded to watch constant stream of cars come through looking for an available spot. I would bring an ice axe for glissading on the way down. We went for the views and were disappointed (see pic of the top) haha you win some you loose some.

[Alexander S]

I did this one two years ago. The whole loop hike is pretty tame and the thing that stuck out most with me was how hot and exposed most of the side of the blast zone was. There is no shade and you will need a wide brimmed hat as the sun will be relentless. I might even have brought my umbrella with hindsight just for that section.

Water is not an issue. The blast side is a bit dry and silty where you do find it but nothing that will create any real issues.

No ropes needed. Some areas have them placed and are easy to negotiate.  We went clockwise for no particular reason.

I haven’t summited since many years but it’s just a scramble and a fun glissade back down as I recall and a permit was not hard to get. Any car can drive up to the parking area.

 

Edit: don’t be tempted to scramble down into the cinder cone. There are toxic gases there as in actually dangerous.

Enjoy!

[Jerry Adams]

” a permit was not hard to get”

these days I hear a lot of people complaining about how hard it is to get a permit

both to climb to the summit, and to a lesser degree backpacking

[Author]

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