On the morning of May 18, 1980, one of the most perfectly formed volcanic peaks in the Cascade Range of the Northwest erupted. Nine hours later Mount St. Helens had lost 1,300-feet from its peak, 230 square miles of pristine forest had been destroyed, and a cubic mile of the mountain had been erupted 12 miles into the atmosphere. This is the story of that day, the mountain, and its recovery.