The Tale of Two Volcanoes

We tend not to think of volcanoes much, especially here in the Pacific Northwest – until, of course, they start weeping copious amounts of steam or, even worse, popping their plug with devastating consequences. These sleeping giants tell us much about the origins of the landscape here: a landscape that is likened to a thin phyllo pastry crust sitting atop constantly shifting dinner plates. It’s the by-product of earth building that has been ongoing since the dawn of time.

Two of these magmatic goliaths, Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens, are part of a chain of active volcanoes in what is known regionally as the Cascade Volcanic Arc, and globally as the Ring of Fire, a 40,000 km horseshoe-shaped region of considerable seismic activity that stretches from New Zealand up to Alaska and down to the tip of South America. Washington State is home to five major volcanoes, but what makes Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens most unique are the relatively easy access roads that seem tailor-made for motorcycle tourers and place you near their molten hearts.

Another factoid is that they were named by the explorer Captain George Vancouver, who frequented the west coast in the late 1700s. Both Alleyne FitzHerbert,