[Steve]

Burley Mountain - French Butte - Mt St Helens

Date: October 13, 2007
Meeting Place: Mt Adams Cafe in Randle, Washington
Departure Time: 9:00 AM

Join me, my dog and possibly my daughter on a tour of the area South of Randle.

We will leave Randle around 9:00 AM and head south on FS 25. We will then leave the Cispus River valley and first visit the 5300 ft. Burley Mountain Lookout, one of the few remaining lookouts in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest (its drivable but has limited parking at the top, so bring your walking shoes if you want to visit the top). If the weather is clear, there are awesome views of Mt Rainier, Mt St Helens, Mt Adams, Mt Hood and the surrounding country.



From Burley Mountain, we will follow FS 77 along the ridge line past Greenhorn Buttes, French Butte, Pinto Rock and Mosquito Meadows back to FS 25. Some areas of this road are narrow and rocky. A high clearance vehicle (any SUV is fine) is recommended for this section (the remaining trip is primarily paved road).



Once we get back to FS 25, we will visit the Windy Ridge Viewpoint at Mt St Helens. We will then travel past Ryan Lake on FS 26 as an alternative to the main route to Windy Ridge.




Depending on the time and desires of the group, we can explore other areas in the region.

There are plenty of photo opportunities on this tour (weather permitting of course). Bring your lunch and water because there are no services once we leave Randle.


I will be driving my Toyota Land Cruiser (look for the Pacific Northwest Backroad Adventures stickers) and will be monitoring CB channel 22. Please let me know if you are planning on attending. It would be a good idea to exchange cell phone numbers.

Steve