pumice plains panorama

Laid out in front of me is what used to be the summit of Mt. St. Helens, tumbled down then covered in ash and pumice. This is probably the most changed area in the blast zone. In around 3 minutes the entire north side of the mountain slide away and a giant cloud of superheated ash and stones blew out over this area. 1,300 feet of the mountain top ended up spread out up to 180 feet deep in debris and 130 in ash over 24 square miles. Even though tiny bits of life started coming back less than a few months after the eruption, overall it's been slow to recover much. Only the hardiest of plants have taken hold. Lupine, because it can survive the dry, harsh, nitrogen and calcium poor environment, is still one of the most dominant plants after 35 years.