According to the Bridge of the Gods tale,
Wy'east (Mt. Hood)
and Pahto (Mt. Adams; also called Klickitat by native peoples) were the sons
of the Great Spirit.
The brothers both competed for the love of the beautiful Loowit (Mt. St. Helens).
When Loowit chose Pahto, Wy'east struck his brother hard so that Pahto's head
was flattened and Wy'east took Loowit from him (thus attempting to explain
Adams' squat appearance). In other versions of the story state that losing
Loowit caused Pahto such grief that he dropped his head in shame.
In one
version of the legend the two sons of the Great Spirit Sahale fell in love with
the beautiful maiden Loowit who could not decide which to choose. The two
braves, Wy'east and Pahto, burned forests and villages in their battle over
her. Sahale became enraged and smote the three lovers. Seeing what he had done
he erected three mountain peaks to mark where each fell. He made beautiful Mount St. Helens
for Loowit, proud and erect Mount Hood for Wy'east, and the somber Mount Adams for the mourning Pahto.
In another telling Wy'east, the
chief of the Multnomah tribe, competed with the chief of the Klickitat tribe. Their great anger led to their
transformation into volcanoes. Their battle is said to have destroyed the Bridge of the Gods and
thus created the great Cascade Rapids of the Columbia River.
Much Indigenous American lore was inspired by
the volcano's beauty and contains numerous legends to explain the eruptions of
Mount St. Helens and other Cascade volcanoes. In one tale, the chief of all the
gods and his two sons, Pahto (also called Klickitat) and Wy'east, traveled down
the Columbia River
from the Far North in search for a suitable area to settle.They came
upon an area that is now called The Dalles
and thought they had never seen a land so beautiful. The sons quarreled over
the land, so to solve the dispute their father shot two arrows from his mighty
bow — one to the north and the other to the south. Pahto followed the arrow to
the north and settled there while Wy'east did the same for the arrow to the
south. The chief of the gods then built the Bridge of the Gods, so his family
could meet periodically.When the
two sons of the chief of the gods fell in love with a beautiful maiden named
Loowit, she could not choose between them. The two young chiefs fought over
her, burying villages and forests in the process. The area was devastated and
the earth shook so violently that the huge bridge fell into the river, creating
the Cascades of the Columbia River Gorge. For punishment, the chief of the
gods struck down each of the lovers and transformed them into great mountains
where they fell. Wy'east, with his head lifted in pride, became the volcano
known today as Mount Hood. Pahto, with his head bent toward his fallen love,
was turned into Mount Adams. The fair Loowit became Mount St. Helens, which
means "smoking or fire mountain".
At 11,240 feet, Wy'east is the highest point in Oregon and the fourth-highest in the Cascade range. Wy'east is home to 12 glaciers and is considered the Oregon volcano most likely to erupt. I have climbed Wy'east numerous times on several routes. In 1970 I was stunt woman for Olivia Hussey in a movie made just down from the summit. Wy'east fumerals are right behind me.
At 11,240 feet, Wy'east is the highest point in Oregon and the fourth-highest in the Cascade range. Wy'east is home to 12 glaciers and is considered the Oregon volcano most likely to erupt. I have climbed Wy'east numerous times on several routes. In 1970 I was stunt woman for Olivia Hussey in a movie made just down from the summit. Wy'east fumerals are right behind me.
Three day old, brave Wy'east, Mr Navy
Three day old Pahto (Mr. Red doesn't really have a flat head)
The fair and beautiful, three day old Loowit, Ms Pink.
