It's not just another mountain lake.

The catastrophic 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens completely remade nearby Spirit Lake. Before…it was home to rustic camps and several resorts. Now the lake is twice as big, half as deep and virtually off limits to the public. The 30th anniversary of the volcano's big blast is coming up May 18. That provided an opportunity for people with memories of the place to gather in Portland. Correspondent Tom Banse discovered Spirit Lake exerts a magnetism which has endured through three decades of isolation.

Darryl Lloyd: "Nice to meet you. I'm Darryl Lloyd, a photographer from Hood River. I became a volcano nut in 1953 when I was ten years old. Our schoolteacher took us up Mount St. Helens, also in 1953. So that's when my connection to the volcano began.

View of Mount St. Helens from Spirit Lake before the eruption

"I remember in 1970, I took a photo of a trillium above Spirit Lake, just a single trillium. When I look at it, I say that's life. Maybe the last photo that I've ever gotten of life near Spirit Lake. There's nostalgia when I see that trillium photo.

"But the memories of all the events in 1980 are so vivid, just so vivid. I can't believe it's been 30 years."Billie Dunne: (singing) "The mice we see a whole lot more, because they're always at our door...Anyway, I'm Billie Dunne."Tom Banse: "Your connection to Spirit Lake?"Billie Dunne: "Oh God, Spirit Lake Camp! 1938, '39, and '40."David Dunne: "My name is David Dunne and this is my mother. She's been singing her camp songs for as long as I can remember."

Billie Dunne: "Spirit Lake was so beautiful, you can't believe it. It was so gorgeous. And the mountain was right there and we'd go swimming..."Tom Banse: "When the mountain erupted and changed that lake forever, do you remember thinking, aw... there went Spirit Lake?"Billie Dunne: "I was sick, just sick about it, yes."David Dunne: "I remember hearing that day that Spirit Lake was gone. That what they said – the news reports – said it appears from the helicopters that Spirit Lake is gone, because it was so covered with debris you could not see the lake anymore."Billie Dunne: "Hanna Dunne."Hanna Dunne: "I had never heard of the lake until we started talking tonight."Billie Dunne: "It was wonderful."David Dunne: "Spirit Lake, no? Well, it's a wilderness area. It's not on..."Billie Dunne: "Oh no, it's gone..."David Dunne: "No, it's not gone. It's just changed. It's not gone."Charlie Chrisafulli: “I'm Charlie Chrisafulli, a research ecologist with the US Forest Service in Olympia, Washington. Right now as we are at the juncture of the 30th anniversary, there are mixed views of how the monument should be managed, particularly Spirit Lake. There are many people that would like to have access to Spirit Lake for a host of reasons. Many of them, or perhaps most of them, are related to recreational fishing.

Spirit Lake after the eruption

"From a scientific perspective, we have 30 years of continuous data creating the best record of a lake's response to large disturbance in the world. Our biggest fear is that if there should be entry of the public into the lake, that that puts that research investment and all those lessons - now and into the future - at risk."The lake has not stabilized yet by any means. There are still new species arriving. There's still changes, tremendous amount of lessons to be learned from Spirit Lake. That's why it is such a remarkable living laboratory that we should maintain in perpetuity."David Dunne: "...will you stay with grandma for just a minute? I'll be right back."Billie Dunne: "I loved being there."Hanna Dunne: "We're going to take you back."Billie Dunne: (singing) "... boom-boom-boom, and in our memories you are dear in our hearts to be. Camp Spirit is sure to shine all the time."That's three generations of the Dunne family of Portland reflecting on Spirit Lake, in the shadow of Mount St. Helens. We also heard from ecologist Charlie Chrisafulli and photographer Darryl Lloyd. Our thanks to the nonprofit Mount St. Helens Institute for organizing a “Spirit Lake Remembrances” event. That's where we gathered most of these stories.Web extras:Mount St. Helens eruption 30th anniversary events