Trail #216 Loowit

⚠️ Important Alert: Certain trails and areas on Forest Road 99 are closed Monday through Friday until October 31. Click here for more information about the trail closures and the Spirit Lake Tunnel Outlet Construction, and what trails are not accessible during the construction.

It is recommended that hikers wanting to hike the Loowit Trail in any length to start their hike at either the Ptarmigan Trailhead at Climbers Bivouac or June Lake Trailhead on Forest Road 83 for uninterrupted access.

This exciting trail circles Mount St. Helens, allowing you to experience the entire range of effects the 1980 eruption had on the mountain and the surrounding area. Loowit Trail #216 is a challenging hike across rough terrain and recommended for experienced hikers and backpackers. The entire route is 30 miles in length. Note that sections vary drastically in terrain and difficulty; some sections involve navigating up and over fields of lava rock boulders, other require descending into steep washes with loose soils. In some places, natural process and weather may have obscured the physical trail, and hikers will need to use route-finding and navigational skills to find their way. Some stream crossings must be forded.

The trail is not crossed by a single road and can be accessed by "feeder" trails usually identified by the number #216 and a letter of the alphabet. Ape Canyon Trail #234, Sheep Canyon Trail #240, and Truman Trail #207 also access the Loowit Trail #216 and allow day hikers the opportunity to hike sections of the trail. 

Loowit Trail Sections

June Lake #216B to Ape Canyon #234

This section of the Loowit Trail #216 starts at the June Lake Trail #216B junction with Loowit trail #216 near June Lake. From this junction this section of the Loowit Trail travels north for about 4 miles to the Ape Canyon Trail #234 junction.

June Lake Trail #216B is the shortest access to Loowit Trail #216 and is accessed from June Lake Trailhead. 

Ape Canyon #234 to Windy Trail #216E

This 3.7-mile section of the trail winds around the east side of Mount St. Helens and enjoys views of the surrounding area. It travels over Windy Pass and then descends to the Pumice Plain. Hikers can view miles of landscape transformed by the power of a volcanic eruption. In places the trail location is identified by wooden post route markers and rock cairns.

The one-mile Windy Trail #216E connects Truman Trail #207 to Loowit Trail #216. It is the most direct access for hikers from Windy Ridge Viewpoint on Forest Road 99 to the Loowit Trail and Loowit Falls Viewpoint Trail #216F. The Windy Trail passes the location of the Timberline Campground and Viewpoint that were destroyed in the 1980 eruption. If you look closely, you can still see traces of asphalt from the road and parking lot.

The 2-mile Abraham Trail #216D creates a connector between the Loowit Trail #216 and Truman Trail #207. The trail is named for the barren Plains of Abraham covered by pyroclastic surges on May 18, 1980. This trail is busy with mountain bikers on weekends. Located between Ape Canyon Trailhead and Windy Ridge, Abraham Trail 216D links the Truman Trail 207, Windy Trail 216E and the Loowit Trail 216.

Windy Trail #216E to Castle Ridge #216G

This 7.8-mile section goes into the very heart of the blast zone. Discover how a debris avalanche, a pyroclastic flow, and a mudflow transformed the features of the area forever. Obtain views of Loowit Falls and the steaming dome and crater of Mount St. Helens. Learn about the important research taking place that enables scientists to unlock many of the mysteries surrounding volcanic eruptions.

This intermittently maintained trail traverses the pumice plain and broken terrain in front of Mount St. Helens. The trail is subject to washouts. The route is marked by wooden posts and rock cairns.

Castle Ridge #216G to Sheep Canyon#240

This section of trail climbs up into remnant old growth forest on Crescent Ridge and then enters a zone of burned trees and flower-rife meadows. 

Castle Ridge Trail #216G also is a connector between Loowit Trail #216 and Weyerhaeuser Road 3000. It also connects to the unmaintained Castle Lake Trail #221. 

Sheep Canyon #240 to Butte Camp #238A

This 3-mile section of the Loowit Trail weaves in and out of timberline skirting Mount St. Helens' western slope. The trail crosses large glacial canyons and avalanche chutes that are more typical of Mount Rainier or Mount Adams, the Cascades' older and more weathered volcanoes.

Here you can enjoy the beauty of subalpine settings and a bounty of wildflowers during the summer season. Explore numerous mudflows and the rugged jumble of rock from past lava flows. Please stay on the trail and protect the fragile meadow of Upper Butte Camp where important plant succession research is taking place. Check out the panorama views to the south and east including views of Mount Hood, Mount Adams, Yale Reservoir, and the Lewis River Valley.

This section of trail receives minimal maintenance. It gains little elevation on the route, descending and ascending steeply only out of the glaciated valleys.

Butte Camp #238A to Ptarmigan Trail #216A

This 2.5-mile section of the Loowit trail provides an invigorating and challenging hike across the rough terrain typical of a young volcano. The trail climbs over lava flows reminiscent of rock gardens thick with heather and delicate mosses. Here you can enjoy excellent views as you travel along the southern slope of Mount St. Helens. Pass through the tall spires of scattered subalpine firs and mountain meadows speckled with wildflowers. See the backbone of Monitor Ridge looming larger and larger on the horizon as you near the junction of Ptarmigan Trail #216A.

This trail receives minimal maintenance and gains little elevation as it follows the timberline of Mount St. Helens. Steep ascents and descents can be expected over massive lava flows. The route is marked by wooden posts over sections with minimal trail tread.

Ptarmigan Trail #216A to June Lake #216B

On this 3.1-mile section, you will pass through a subalpine forest setting where you can discover hoop trees. During the 1980 eruption, small saplings were weighted down by heavy ash fall. Their tops remained buried, so they grow in a "hooped over" position. Enjoy spectacular views of Mount Adams as you travel through a vast meadow at timberline's edge. Then descend into the many-layered canopy of an old-growth forest. Ford the snowmelt creek at the crest of Chocolate Falls, a slurry of rock- and silt-laden waters that roll and churn down a 40-foot drop. Follow the trail over rugged rocks of an ancient lava flow that coursed down the mountain 350 years ago. As you near June Lake, pass through trees that managed to elude Mount St. Helens' eruptions for hundreds of years.

This minimally maintained trail travels at timberline for most of its route. It passes over the rugged rocky terrain of lava flows and occasionally enters into subalpine or old-growth forest.

Ptarmigan Trail #216A climbs steadily from Climber's Bivouac Trailhead, passing through forest and small meadows. The junction with Loowit Trail #216 is reached in 2 miles.