Two St. Helens Hiking Trails Reopened

Two popular hiking trails on the north side of Mount St. Helens have reopened because volcanic activity on the mountain has settled down, the manager of the national volcanic monument said.

Portions of the Loowit and Truman trails in the Spirit Lake Basin are open again, monument manager Lynn Roberts said. They were closed Sept. 29.

“The trails were closed as a safety precaution in case explosions inside the crater caused rock slides down the north face,” Roberts said. “That danger has decreased, and so we are reopening the trails to the public.”

The U.S. Geological Survey said 25 small earthquakes, less than magnitude 1, were detected during December, down from 100 earthquakes in the crater in September.

Mount St. Helens erupted in May 1980.