Trip Report: Day Hiking Mt. Hood
When: 7/19/2018
Location: Timberline Trail from Timberline Lodge to Zigzag Canyon
Conditions:
High in high 50s. The day started out cloudy but around 1 the clouds departed and we got a beautiful view of the mountain.
The trail had a few parts that were a little muddy from the little streams but it wasn't at all an issue.
Duration:
We hiked 4-ish miles with a small amount of elevation change. With a long break for lunch, we took about 4 hours, but it could be done in much less time. We left Portland at 11 am and after a short hike and a lakeside dinner we were home around 9 pm.
Difficulty:
Easy. There are somewhat steep parts that those with troublesome knees would benefit from bringing trekking poles for. We stopped at the river crossing which is very easy during the summer. I wouldn't recommend this hike for the rainy season though.
Kid Friendly: Yes
Pet Friendly: Yes
The Full Report:
I had an Australian friend coming to town, one who'd heard me talk about how beautiful Portland is for many years, so I had to think of a hike close to the city that would show her the beautiful nature surrounding PDX. I felt that choosing Mt Hood was an obvious option: it overlooks Portland in its grand snowiness and is a staple of the life of a Portland outdoors lover: it's where we ski in winter and swim in the lakes during summer, and even sometimes brave the rain for a hike full of green. As Timberline lodge is a staple of Mt Hood I figured that was a good starting point, and from there we could follow the Timberline Trail/Pacific Crest Trail for a hike through some wildflowers, big trees and eventually to a crystal-clear river.
We got up to the lodge around 12:30 pm after a slow morning having driven from Portland (~1.5 hr drive), packed up water and extra layers and bananas and set out for our hike. We followed the signs behind the Timberline Lodge for the PCT and Timberline trail, and after getting caught doing circles on the trails just outside the lodge once or twice, we finally passed the Mountaineer Route and were properly on our way. We weaved through the greenery, taking in the grandness of the trees and waiting for the clouds to depart so we could enjoy the view of Mt. Hood.
We passed a lot of hikers, many of them wearing running shoes with no packs, while others were obviously kitted out for a multi-day backpacking adventure. We stumbled upon some families with small children, some of whom tripped and stumbled on the volcanic rock but were still seeming to have a great time. We found the trail to be relatively flat, it had a switchback or two but didn't feel strenuous.
Eventually, we came to a point where you can look down to the Little Zig Zag Canyon, which looked to us very far down and we wondered how we were going to get to the bottom without haphazardly sliding down the hill. We kept following the trail to the left, where it entered a forest of trees that shaded us very well. Here we often found patches of the trail that were muddy from small streams and with careful steps managed to not slip on them. After taking the switchbacks down the hill, I was thankful none of which were hard on my bad knee, we made it down the canyon and to the crystal-clear river. We sat in the sun and enjoyed our bananas and the beautiful, now not cloudy view of the mountain. We watched as each new hiker approached and paused as decided how they were getting across the river. No one had trouble with it.
After basking in the sun for a while we decided to head on back to leave time to go to Clear Lake. The walk up didn't feel as steep as we'd anticipated, and the last half of the hike, though mostly unshaded, felt nice in the high 50s weather. We made it back to the car a bit before 5 and decided to drive over to Clear Lake to make some dinner. The drive was only about 25 minutes, and once we got there we took the road to the right to the free parking areas (thought the fee day use area is lovely, we'd forgotten to bring $5 cash. Silly mistake!)
The road is quite rough, I was certainly happy I had a 4-wheel drive for it. We saw barely anyone on the road and enjoyed being in an outdoor space in relative solitude. We heeded the posted signs and parked on a turnoff and walked down to the water, where we used a large rock to place our camping stove on so as not to start a fire. We cooked up some soup and tea and enjoyed our dinner. Afterward, we noticed the amount of rubbish around the campsite and decided to pick some up and take it to the nearest dumpster. The drive back to Portland afterward felt short as it was mostly through the beautiful forest.
A day hike and a lakeside dinner were the perfect way to introduce my friend to the beauty of Oregon. Considering Mt Hood is only an hour and a bit away from Portland and boasts easily accessible hikes like the Timberline Trail (which you can just hike part of like we did) and beautiful lakes like Clear Lake, Trillium, Olalie, and Frog Lake, it's a great place to go for a day trip for a local or visitor alike. The only thing we really missed out on was taking an inflatable paddleboard out on the lake, but I guess that's for next time.
We got up to the lodge around 12:30 pm after a slow morning having driven from Portland (~1.5 hr drive), packed up water and extra layers and bananas and set out for our hike. We followed the signs behind the Timberline Lodge for the PCT and Timberline trail, and after getting caught doing circles on the trails just outside the lodge once or twice, we finally passed the Mountaineer Route and were properly on our way. We weaved through the greenery, taking in the grandness of the trees and waiting for the clouds to depart so we could enjoy the view of Mt. Hood.
We passed a lot of hikers, many of them wearing running shoes with no packs, while others were obviously kitted out for a multi-day backpacking adventure. We stumbled upon some families with small children, some of whom tripped and stumbled on the volcanic rock but were still seeming to have a great time. We found the trail to be relatively flat, it had a switchback or two but didn't feel strenuous.
Eventually, we came to a point where you can look down to the Little Zig Zag Canyon, which looked to us very far down and we wondered how we were going to get to the bottom without haphazardly sliding down the hill. We kept following the trail to the left, where it entered a forest of trees that shaded us very well. Here we often found patches of the trail that were muddy from small streams and with careful steps managed to not slip on them. After taking the switchbacks down the hill, I was thankful none of which were hard on my bad knee, we made it down the canyon and to the crystal-clear river. We sat in the sun and enjoyed our bananas and the beautiful, now not cloudy view of the mountain. We watched as each new hiker approached and paused as decided how they were getting across the river. No one had trouble with it.
After basking in the sun for a while we decided to head on back to leave time to go to Clear Lake. The walk up didn't feel as steep as we'd anticipated, and the last half of the hike, though mostly unshaded, felt nice in the high 50s weather. We made it back to the car a bit before 5 and decided to drive over to Clear Lake to make some dinner. The drive was only about 25 minutes, and once we got there we took the road to the right to the free parking areas (thought the fee day use area is lovely, we'd forgotten to bring $5 cash. Silly mistake!)
The road is quite rough, I was certainly happy I had a 4-wheel drive for it. We saw barely anyone on the road and enjoyed being in an outdoor space in relative solitude. We heeded the posted signs and parked on a turnoff and walked down to the water, where we used a large rock to place our camping stove on so as not to start a fire. We cooked up some soup and tea and enjoyed our dinner. Afterward, we noticed the amount of rubbish around the campsite and decided to pick some up and take it to the nearest dumpster. The drive back to Portland afterward felt short as it was mostly through the beautiful forest.
A day hike and a lakeside dinner were the perfect way to introduce my friend to the beauty of Oregon. Considering Mt Hood is only an hour and a bit away from Portland and boasts easily accessible hikes like the Timberline Trail (which you can just hike part of like we did) and beautiful lakes like Clear Lake, Trillium, Olalie, and Frog Lake, it's a great place to go for a day trip for a local or visitor alike. The only thing we really missed out on was taking an inflatable paddleboard out on the lake, but I guess that's for next time.