Mt. St. Helen's or Mt. Rainier?

April 20, 2006 6:14 AM

I'm going to be in Seattle for a few days and wonder what's a better day-trip for a couple of hours of hiking--Mt. St. Helen's or Mt. Rainier? What's the general travel time by car between Seattle and either of the two parks? Which offers the most scene route? I'm a light hiker, good for 2-3 hours or so. Would welcome route recommendations as well.
posted by quintno to travel & transportation (13 comments total)

I hope you don't mean you're heading out in the next few weeks. At the moment, both mountains are pretty snowy. And for at least the next month or two you'll have greater than 50 percent odds of getting rained on.

Mount St. Helens is in the Portland area. Because of indirect routes and winding roads it takes about two hours to drive to the volcano from Portland, but it's only about 40 miles by air from the city. For that reason, I'd guess that Mount Rainier might be the better bet.

But I've never been to Mt. Rainier and have limited experience with Seattle, so if the distance between those two is also hefty you might choose Mount St. Helens just for the awesomeness of looking into its crater.

You'd have to take I-5 south for something like 100 miles to get to Mount St. Helens, though. There are some scenic parts once you get past the Sea-Tac megalopolis, but it's not the world's most beautiful drive.

If you do go to Mount St. Helens, you should drive to one of the visitor's centers and ask a ranger for hiking advice. Depending on weather, the optimal trail will change. There's a nice moderate trail that gives you good views of the crater and various volcanic features that starts from Coldwater Ridge and loops around. But much of it is exposed to the elements, so I wouldn't do it if the weather's bad.
posted by croutonsupafreak at 6:27 AM on April 20, 2006

Go to St. Helens so you can visit/hike the Ape Cave.
posted by zonkout at 7:41 AM on April 20, 2006

Mt. Rainier's a nice mountain but Mt. St. Helen's is unique.

Plus Mt. Rainier gets a lot of cloud cover and it's quite disappointing if you can't see the actual mountain.
posted by smackfu at 7:50 AM on April 20, 2006

I hiked around this area a couple of years ago. Mount Rainier is exceptionally beautiful, but (to echo smackfu), I've never seen anything like Mount St. Helens. There's a lake on the approach that is full of dead trees and the scale of the devastation takes your breath away. Also in the area is the Hoh National Rainforest which has plenty of easy walks - this is the only rainforest in North America and is well worth a visit (although I remember it being more of a trek from Seattle).
posted by ny_scotsman at 8:05 AM on April 20, 2006

Going to Helens means a 2-3hour drive each way, it really is more of a Portland location. Cool mountain though. Rainier is in the 90minute drive regime as I recall.

If there is any possibility of another solution, I'd advise you to check out the I-90 corridor, east of Seattle. Nice day hikes out there. Tiger Mountain, Mt. Si, several others. Google gives me this offhand. Plenty of great day hikes can be found in less than an hour of driving. I can throw more information at you via email if you like, I've actualy got a hiking book for the area on my desk right now.
posted by Shutter at 8:09 AM on April 20, 2006

I second the I-90 corridor. As a former resident of North Bend (the location of Mt. Si) and a frequent hiker there, I will tell you it's one of the things I miss the most. Si is only a couple of thousand feet (2400?) and so not subject to the snow and wind you're going to get at Ranier, nor the drive you'll have for St. Helens. Don't let that fool you - the view is really rather nice, and you'll get your three hours out of it.

Further up into the mountains, one of my all-time favorite hikes is Twin Falls, I believe it's exit 33 or 34. There's a ranger station on Main Street in North Bend that could help you out.

Have a good hike!
posted by hoborg at 8:36 AM on April 20, 2006

Si is just over 4000 feet, so the top might still be snowed over (the snow was still down around 2000 feet when I checked last weekend). Definitely a nice hike, though.

The Hoh rainforest is a beautiful place to visit, but it is clear on the far side of the Olympic Peninsula, a good five and a half hours from Seattle. I wouldn't recommend it as a day-trip.
posted by Mars Saxman at 9:05 AM on April 20, 2006

Just an fyi - The rim of Mount St. Helens is still closed to climbers. However, I believe, that the park is considering opening it soon. Be sure to check its status before you go.
posted by Staggering Jack at 9:17 AM on April 20, 2006

If I had to hike, I would go to Port Angelus, by taking the ferry over to Winslow and then like this. And then drive up the Ehwha River until the road ends. . .it's several miles up Boulder Creek but really pretty, and some wonderful hot springs await at the end.

Much pretty stuff to see on the way including Port Townsend.
posted by Danf at 9:49 AM on April 20, 2006

Oops. . .this was sposed to be the second link!
posted by Danf at 9:51 AM on April 20, 2006

It the weather does actually turn out to be nice, Mt. Si will be uber-crowded on a weekend.

Another option is going north and trying something along the Mountain Loop Highway or along the Cascade Loop. A lot of those hikes will still be snowy now though. If you want to keep going on 90 to the Ellensburg area, there are lots of hikes in the desert. It can be very nice this time of year, when on the west side of the mountains it's all rainy.

This hike near Ellensburg is a good one. Nice views and lots of wildflowers in April and May.
posted by sevenless at 11:24 AM on April 20, 2006

St. Helens will be a heck of a long drive for a day trip from Seattle. But if you're willing to get up early and get home late, it's do-able.

It is a little early in the year for Rainier. Many of the roads won't be open until late May to late June. Go here for more info. Trail conditions are here and still look very wintery.

One good resource is the Washington Trails Association. They have a hiking guide you can search through, as well as trip reports from people who have returned from hikes who describe the trail conditions (e.g. we encountered snow on the trail beginning at elev 4000', below that trail was very muddy with lots of downed trees...) as well as a review of the scenery, etc.

Mt. Si is not a good choice if you're looking for peace and quiet though. It's likely to be pretty crowded on weekend days due to its proximity to Seattle. It's a pretty steep hike as well, so it can be a good workout if you're looking for that.
posted by pitchblende at 12:52 PM on April 20, 2006

Mt. St. Helen's is too far if you want to do more than just get out of the car and look around. Unfortunately, the good spots at Mt. Rainier won't be open but for anyone else, the Paradise trail from the Paradise parking lot (duh) is perfect for the out of towner, just long enough to get out there and make your legs a little sore, spectacular and without that annoying wooded approach so many hikes here have.

Don't go to Mt. Si. It's an ugly, extremely strenuous hike overcrowded as hell and the top with the view will likely be snowy. You'll spend all day cursing yourself.

Consider Snow Lake. Only 1 hour from Seattle, crowded but scenic and not too strenuous. Definitely will be snowy, but with goretex boots and hiking poles, you'll be fine. Or you could rent snow shoes that morning at REI and still have plenty of hiking time. Or Kendall Katwalk, one of my favorites. Both along I-90.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 1:33 PM on April 20, 2006