Johnston Ridge offers point blank view

Point blank.

Up close and personal.

Unobstructed.

Those are the words and phrases that come to mind when it comes to the view of Mount St. Helens from Johnston Ridge.

There is nothing between you and the crater and lava dome on the exploded north side of the Washington volcano as you look across from next to the Johnston Ridge Observatory.

All that is below is the landslide zone from what set off the infamous May 18, 1980 blast, including a deep canyon carved out in only the 42 years since that would look to be much older.

You can pay $8.00 to go inside the observatory and take a look at the mountain through the window and at presentations and films about its eruptions, or walk along the outside and take in the view and snap pictures.

Also impressive on Johnston Ridge besides the view of the volcano is the mixture of barrenness and dead fallen trees and stumps along with new life.

Grass, bushes and small trees have poked their way into the scene along with flowering vegetation such as flaming red Indian Paintbrush and white Everlasting Flowers.  Even an occasional chipmunk makes an appearance.

Highway 504 to Johnston Ridge is well paved the whole way, and you can look down on the Toutle River and the mud flow that came crashing down the valley after the 1980 landslide and blast.

You can also look up and see the west side of the mountain and part of the crater to the left.

From there the road winds down to the shores of Coldwater Lake, which was also created in 1980, then back up again as you get closer and closer to Johnston Ridge -- and the mountain itself.

The road ends in a wide parking lot, and from the southeast side of the lot is a trail that takes you uphill to the observatory and viewpoint.

Johnston Ridge is named after David A. Johnston, the volcanologist stationed on the ridge who announced to his Vancouver headquarters and the world that "This is it" about the May 18 eruption right before his death in the blast.

How to get there:

To get to Johnston Ridge, take the I-5 exit onto Highway 504 at Castle Rock and stay on it to its end 52 miles to the east.  You can also take the Highway 505 exit until it goes through Toledo and joins 504, where you take a left.

The Johnston Ridge Observatory address is 24000 Spirit Lake Highway, Toutle, WA 98649.

For more information, call (360) 274-2140.

Text and photos by Tim Clinton.

Lighthouse shines on Puget Sound

It's so close and yet so far.

Point Robinson Lighthouse shines its bright Fresnel lens a short distance across Puget Sound from Federal Way to Des Moines and Three Tree Point, but requires a good deal of driving, a ferry boat ride and more driving to get to it.

A ferry can only be accessed from West Seattle to the north, Tacoma's Point Defiance to the south and from Southworth on the Kitsap Peninsula side to the west.

From any of those directions you must then drive to the middle of lengthy Vashon Island and across Maury Island to eventually get to Point Robinson on the northeast corner of Maury.

From there you park in a small lot on top of a tree covered bluff and wander down the hill to the park lawn and driftwood strewn beach.

You can sit on a log and take in the close-up views of Federal Way, Redondo Beach, Des Moines and Normandy Park and any ships that pass in between, or walk to the lighthouse and its accompanying residence.

The lighthouse was first built in 1914 and opened in 1915,  and is a 38 foot tall structure made of concrete.  It was automated in 1978.

The whole site was featured in a children's Christmas story written by Berkeley Breathed by the name of "The Red Ranger Came Calling."

The park covers a total of 10 acres of beach front property and marks the halfway point between Seattle and Tacoma.

Lighthouse tours are not currently available because of Covid, so it would be best to save any visit until after that scare is sufficiently over to allow them to resume.

For more information on the Point Robinson Lighthouse park, you can contact the Vashon Park District at info@vashonparks.org or (206) 463-9602.

How to get there:

The Point Robinson Lighthouse is located at 3705 S.W. Point Robinson Road in Vashon, Washington.

Take one of the aforementioned ferries to first get to Vashon Island, landing on the northern tip from Southworth or from Fauntleroy in West Seattle -- or on the southern shore at Tahlequah if coming from Point Defiance in Tacoma.

From either the north or south, drive up the hill and stay on Vashon Highway S.W. until you come to S.W. Quartermaster Drive and turn east into Portage.  Turn right onto the narrow connection between Vashon and Maury islands and stay on it as it becomes S.W. Point Robinson Road.

Otherwise you could take a small private vessel from Des Moines or Redondo Beach to Point Robinson on a nice day.  The park is only a two mile trip across the East Passage of Puget Sound from Des Moines.

Just follow that flashing light.

Text and photos by Tim Clinton.