Diary/Photo Journal
Week of July 27, 2003
The reason for our staying so close to the Columbia River is that we were scheduled to replace several windows in Cindy through a manufacturer in Vancouver, Washington. Unfortunately, when we arrived at the appointed time, the windows were not ready and we had no choice but to hang around the area for another day. Well, being the resourceful types, we quickly picked up the map and found a couple of little known mountains nearby and made our way north.
One of these nearby mountains used to be much grander than it is now; however, its fame came when its stature was greatly reduced. In May of 1980, Mt. St. Helens erupted and literally an entire side of the mountain slid down and blew out across the neighboring Spirit Lake. The devastation is unbelievable until you see it for your own eyes. Our pictures cannot do the magnificence justice.
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Yale Reservoir on the way to Mt. St. Helens |
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Mt. St. Helens and Louise the side of the mountain just gone! |
The blast created a landscape that you would liken to the surface of the moon. Plant and animal life has returned to the area, but it will be a very long time before the forest returns to its previous splendor. And remember, when you view these pictures, the eruption of Mt. Mazama (Crater Lake) was estimated to be 150 times greater.
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These pictures are all of Spirit Lake,
a once pristine and heavenly lake at the base of Mt. St. Helens. Part of the mountain slid into the lake, squeezing the circumference and thereby forcing the water to deepen by hundreds of feet. Also, thousands of trees were blasted into the lake, where they remain. Gerson's picture shows what is now the southern shore |
A bittersweet story is associated with the eruption of Mt. St. Helens. Harry Truman lived on the south shore of Spirit Lake since 1926, 54 of his 84 years of life. When Harry was told he had to evacuate, he refused, wanting to stay with his home he dearly loved. On May 15, 1980, Mt. St. Helens claimed his life and now, Harry and his home are underneath 200' of water of the newly shaped Spirit Lake. One cannot look upon the lake without feeling tears form in your eyes and a sigh of knowing he died as he lived - the way he wanted, the master of his fate; the captain of his soul.
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Views of the trees blown over - can you tell which way the wind came? |
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Gerson overlooking the outer rim of devastation and the destroyed and the new together |
We were fortunate to have a gorgeous, clear day and the views to the nearby mountains was fantastic. We had clear views of Mt. Adams and Mt. Rainier.
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Mt. Rainier from Mt. St. Helens |
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What Mt. St. Helens surrounding area should look like |
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Messing with
Gerson
while he is cleaning the window |