Party Size:12 Sign-up Status: Full but taking alternates
This Mother’s Day Eve climb is part of a weekend celebrating Mothers on Mount St. Helens. In the past, over 1,000 climbers ascended the mountain wearing dresses to honor their Mothers. Currently, because of the dark forces against anyone having fun or perhaps even against Mothers, the Forest Service now limits the number of permits to a measly 350. Despite the buzz killers, join 349 of your new best friends on Mount St Helens on Saturday Mother’s Day Eve and then spend Sunday with or honoring your Mother.
This is not a wilderness experience. It will demand tolerance for the odd, patience with long lines, and requires wearing a dress. A number of spots on this climb are reserved for 2023 climb school graduates.
Mt St Helens is technically easy but still a strenuous climb: the Worm Flows route totals 12 miles round trip and 5700 feet of elevation gain. The basic plan is for our group to meet at the Marble Mountain Snow Park (the trailhead for the Worm Flows route) at 6:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 13th. You have the option of camping at the trailhead the evening of May 12th or driving up the day of the climb. The permits have been arranged and climbers will reimburse the climb leader the $15 permit fee.
For an OPB segment on the history of Mother’s Day on Mount Saint Helens, go here.
When: Saturday, May 13, 2023
Where: Washington
Climb Leader(s):
Garry Stephenson
Ellen Gradison
Difficulty: S1
Driving Distance RT: 230 miles from Salem
Climb Distance RT: 12 miles
Elevation Gain: 5,700 ft