Mount St. Helens Summer Climbing Route: Monitor Ridge

In the first 2(ish) miles, you'll steadily gain about 1000 ft through a lovely pine forest. The next 2(ish) miles are tough going, navigating a boulder field while climbing another 2500 ft. The last mile(ish) is best described as a slog up another 1000 ft on loose dirt, ash, and pumice.The first section is a well-traveled trail through the beautiful forest up to the treeline. From there, the next section is through boulders and is marked by vertical posts every 100 yards or so. You'll be picking your own route through the bolder field, but keep following the posts. This may be challenging in low visibility conditions, but on a clear night we had no troubles keeping to the route. Going too far off route early in the season, you may run into some snow fields, but getting back to the route should be straightforward. After reaching the end of the boulder field, your route is primarily just slogging through the pumice and ash to the rim.Descend along the same route you went up. The route is well traveled and popular during the day.