Solo Hiking Lava Canyon - No Talk, No Music, Just Nature. - 4K Virtual Hike

A virtual solo waterfall hike of Lava Canyon on Mt St Helens with no talk, no music, no shots of me looking at the camera... just nature. The full journey in real-time, 4K video. The Lava Canyon Trail may be short, but it packs a wallop - boasting a smorgasborg of scenery including fascinating volcanic geology, thundering waterfalls, lush ferns & evergreens, and the sparkling waters of the Muddy River which, despite its name, is blissfully blue-tinged & pure. Although Mt St Helens lurks out of sight on the trail, it's presence is obvious at every turn - the canyon was deeply carved by an epic mudflow (ie. lahar) caused by the 1980 eruption, chiseling its way through the contorted basalt rockforms formed by thousands-of-years-old lava flows. Amazingly, a winding trail has been carved into this tortured yet strikingly beautiful landscape, starting with an easy accessible section that winds its way down through peaceful forest, then a moderate path following both sides of the river - usually linked by bridges to form a loop (unfortunately the far suspension bridge has been closed for years), and for the finale: a quiet yet rugged venture further downstream for more views. Enjoy! For anyone who actually reads these parts: thank you, first of all. Apologies for the delay with uploads; I reached a point that probably a lot of Youtubers do... burnout after putting a lot of time & effort into a video (two months worth, for the previous one), only to see it get very few views. Part of the issue is definitely my workflow - by far, audio editing is the most time-consuming. Trains, airplanes, highway noise, wind, people talking, dogs barking, or just weird snaps, crackles, & pops... I can see why nearly all hiking channels use canned nature sounds or music instead of live audio. My question to you is: how important is having real audio to you (if at all)?? And how important is it that I show the entire hike, even potentially "dull" parts?? Unless there's a demand to keep things as-is, I'm considering a 'best of'-style format, where I highlight interesting sections of the trail, with more panorama montages and 'still' nature shots thrown in. I'd love to hear your feedback! Highlights: 00:00 - Intro 01:04 - Through the Woods, Down to the River 05:05 - Boardwalk Platform 08:21 - Very Tall Trees 12:00 - River Glimpses 15:03 - Lava Canyon 17:42 - The First Bridge 22:01 - Across the River 26:54 - Ladder Descent 29:30 - Potato Chip Rocks & Ferns 32:59 - Riverside Interlude + Water Ouzels 40:21 - Indiana Jones Bridge 41:18 - Back to the Fork, on the Trail Less Traveled 45:55 - Upper Lava Falls 57:00 - Far Side of the Bridge 59:20 - Triple Falls Glimpses 1:00:39 - Cold Slab Water Crossing 1:05:30 - Top of Lava Falls 1:10:48 - Twin Falls 1:15:38 - Lava Falls, In Full 1:17:04 - The Scariest Parts 1:18:11 - Mt St Helens View & Outro Trip Stats: Distance: 2.0 mi / 3.2 km round-trip (approx.) Elevation Gain: 600 ft / 183 m Trailhead GPS: 46.1657, -122.0884 Restrictions: National Forest Pass required; leashed pets allowed but NOT recommended imo, due to narrow tread & cliffs Camping: restricted - no designated sites on the trail (& no decent spots anyway) Filmed June 2022. Please feel free to comment on the good, the bad, or the ugly; this project is an on-going learning experience.