Discover lava tube caves, old-growth forests, waterfalls, and more on a guided tour of Mt. St. Helens. The park’s vastness and variety of attractions can be overwhelming on your own, but by visiting with a guide you don’t miss any of the highlights. Plus, you can learn about the area’s geology, ecology, and history—much of which you might miss if visiting the park on your own.
Explore Mt. St. Helens on a guided trip from Portland
Lunch and headlamps (for exploring the cave) are provided so you don’t have to plan ahead
Stop at top vistas, including an overlook of Mt. St. Helens (weather permitting)
Enjoy convenient hotel pickup and drop-off in Portland
What To Expect
Mount St. Helens
Travel to Mt. St. Helens and environs with a naturalist guide who will discuss the geology, ecology, climate, history, and legends of the area, as well as the history of US public lands. Your guide will lead you on hikes near waterfalls, through lava tubes, and within oldgrowth forests. Stops both inside and outside of Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.
7 hours • Admission Ticket Included
Ape Cave Lava Tubes
Traverse North America’s longest continuous lava tube! No matter how hot it is outside, the temperature in the cave is a constant 42F (5.5C), so bring layers. Also, be sure to bring shoes that are suitable for scrambling, and wipe those shoes before entering the bats’ home so that they don’t get white-nose syndrome!
1 hour • Admission Ticket Included
Trail of Two Forests Trail
A lava mold forest. Walk through a wonderland of wells and tunnels, that’s hard to pull kids away from.
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
WIndy Ridge Viewpoint
Weather permitting, we’ll take you to the closest viewpoint with a view into the crater that is accessible by vehicle. There you’ll have a picnic lunch, and have the opportunity to burn off your lunch by ascending the 357 stairs to a 365-degree view overlooking Spirit Lake, with the mountain looming. If conditions are clear enough, you’ll see four stratovolcanoes: St. Helens, Rainier, Adams, and Hood.
1 hour • Admission Ticket Included
Johnston Ridge Observatory
The place where Dave Johnston got on the radio and yelled “Vancouver! Vancouver! This is it!”, the fateful morning of May 18, 1980.
• Admission Ticket Included
Mount St. Helens Visitor Center
The visitor center with the most detailed history and geology of Mt. St. Helens.
• Admission Ticket Included
Lava Canyon
A fairytale landscape of sapphire waterfalls and blue-grey andesite that were scoured and smoothed by the 1980 lahar resulting from the rapid melting of the Shoestring Glacier by pyroclastic flows.
• Admission Ticket Included
Coldwater Ridge Visitor Center
The visitor center that provides a special retro experience, with a movie about Mt. St. Helens circa 1985, and a 1990s-era Disneyland Haunted Mansion-style park ranger statue, who will give you a lecture.
• Admission Ticket Included
Highlight
Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
Not wheelchair accessible
Not recommended for travelers with back problems
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
This tour operates in all weather conditions, and the cave is 42F (5.5C). Please dress in layers.
We recommend shoes that are suitable for minor rock climbing (i.e. scrambling/bouldering).
Wear long pants, as there will be opportunities for crawling.
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 14 travelers
Include
Lunch
Air-conditioned vehicle
PA system to hear guide while driving
Snacks
Bottled water
Headlamps
If weather does not allow mountain visibility, a modified itinerary will take you to bonus stops.
Professional naturalist guide
Hotel pickup/drop-off in Portland area
Gratuities
Exclude
Hotel pickup/drop-off in Seattle area