Volcano

" All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us" ~ J.R.R.Tolkien

Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. The volcano, located in southwestern Washington, used to be a beautiful symmetrical cone about 9,600 feet (3,000 meters) above sea level. The eruption, which removed the upper 1,300 feet (396 meters) of the summit, left a horseshoe-shaped crater and a barren wasteland. Today the land is healing, having recovered its natural beauty, but the landscape has been permanently altered.