Very interesting to visit. See the film that is at the first visitor center. The learning center down the road 40 miles has interesting information as well. The observatory is closed due to a mud slide. We had a great day, so could see most of the mountain. Pretty drive, windy. Incredible what happened and how it altered the landscape.

Actual visit was in July 2020. Many changes happened that were government -related handling of Federal parks during the previous year that were not in the best interest of Nature, or planet Earth for that matter. Having said that, it is really important to have people that care about our National Parks and planet to be in government offices making decisions for parks, humans, wildlife. Just an opinion/recommendation. Beautiful scenery and place to photograph.

You may want to wait a couple of years to visit this awesome place. The Johnson Ridge Observatory will be inaccessible for a few years due to a bridge/road being washed out by a 2023 flood. There are still some pretty good views from overlooks and the discovery center on that side of the mountain. The "back side" and the Lava Canyon / Ape Cave areas are nice; however, when we were there, Lava Canyon and Climbers Bivouac were still snowed in and we were told that Lava Canyon trails were closed until some major trail maintenance could be done. Also, I believe the suspension bridge is closed limiting trail options. Ape Caves were fun but be aware that you are now required to obtain a timed entry permit ($2.00) online. You have a two-hour window in which to arrive at the Caves parking area. The permit doesn't guarantee you a parking spot - just to opportunity to use one if you find it. I suggest you go early and beat the crowds.

I've had Mount St Helens on my bucket list as long as I've had a Bucket List. The eruption is one of the earliest new events that I remember. I finally got there, on a very cloudy day.. I sill loved it. We stopped at every pull-off and Visitor/Learning Center on the way out and back. We drove down to were the road was closed (due to the landslide, which, if you do your homework before you went, you would know about from the many stories online and of course, the US Forest Service Website). Some locations were better than others, but the highlights were the Coldwater Ridge Visitor Center, the WA Parks Mt Saint Helens Interpretive Center, The Mt St Helens Forest Learning Center, and the boardwalk down at Coldwater Lake. We actually got a halfway decent look at the mountain and crater from the boardwalk, along with a really good Ranger talk. I do wish I could have gotten a few shots of the mountain in all her glory, but it was a very memorable trip none the less.