Mount Rainy and Mount St Helens-a-lot-of-fog

We figured when we started planning our Memorial Day Weekend excursion months ago that the weather probably would not cooperate-- 'cause that's how things tend to go. We just weren't expecting it to rain literally the entire time during our 4 day excursion to the Cascades. At least Chris had booked us a cheap hotel with an indoor pool rather than going with our original idea of camping.
On our way to Kelso, WA we drove through Naches and onto the White Pass Scenic Byway. We got to see rolling foothills covered in vibrant evergreen trees. I still can't believe the brightness and variety of color, even in the gloom of the rain. We passed by a few glistening lakes, waterfalls, and sparsely-snowcovered ski hills as we went over the mountain. Near the end of the byway we stopped at the John R. Jackson house. In 1844 old JohnBoy decided to build a cabin in the area, making him one of the first permanent settlers north of the Columbia River. (History is so young out here.) While at the cabin, a man told Chris a wild story about the world's largest egg, so naturally we had to drive to the next town over and have a look-see for ourselves. Welcome to Winlock, WA. Population: around 1200. I may be making fun, but it was pretty much the most exciting part of the day.

On Saturday we set out to ride the Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad. It was scenic, just not in the way we had imagined when planning the trip. But, unlike one lady who complained and wanted her money back because she never saw the mountain (what did she expect on such a rainy day), we felt the adventure was still worth it.

They were having a steam engine weekend, so Ally and Cora got to ride the special train over the rivers and through the woods, past some campsites, and out to the lake. We even got to see them switch out the engines before returning to the depot.

Here is a great shot of where Mount Rainier should've been looming majestically high in the background. You wouldn't think Mother Nature could hide something so big!


Here's a pic of my most memorable scene. Why would you build your outhouse right next to an active train track, with the door facing outward? Then again, I'm questioning the judgment of people who were sitting out by a campfire, chugging more than a few beers in the rain.

On Sunday we tried our luck at seeing Mount St Helens. Again, it was a pretty drive up the scenic highway but visibility was limited. Every now and then the clouds seemed to lift a little, but it was usually just to taunt us. We stopped at overlooks and spent time at the four visitor centers along the way. We saw movies about the eruption 30 years ago, as well as before-and-after pictures of the mountain.
The most interesting part for me was Weyerhaeuser's reforestation efforts. Did you know that thousands of employees spent several years replanting trees by hand in order to insure their roots were in the soil and not the 6+ inches of ash covering the ground?


When we arrived at the observatory at the end of the road, the view looked like this. We watched another movie, and the fog lift enough to reveal Helen's snow-brushed base. As we were leaving, very small windows of clarity appeared over the mountain, and we started to realize just how massive Mt Saint Helens still is-- even without her top. We stayed an additional 40 minutes in hopes that things would shift enough for us to see the volcanic crater. This was the best view nature would provide for us that day.

On Monday we slept in 'cause we were on vacation. Well, that and it was still raining. And both our girls seemed to have slight temperatures, runny noses, and congested coughs. We had toyed with the idea of visiting Kalama, WA, home of the Twilight high school and Edward Cullen's June birthday bash, but we weren't in the mood for sparkling vampires. (Chris and I have never read the books or seen the movies, so that's about all we know.) It was time to go home before our little ones turned into werewolves. Vacation was over.