Day Trip to Mt. Hood

One word of advice to anyone trying to take a weekend trip to Mt. Hood - call in advance for a campsite.  This may be common sense for most, but we rely heavily on my husband's luck to help us find places to stay at the last minute. His luck was not enough to overcome the reality of unusually warm weekend weather at the popular Mt. Hood campgrounds.

     

We found one campground on lovely Trillium Lake that had zero reserved spots, but many "open" spots.  These sites generally sit on uneven ground between narrow openings in the forest, and come with a high probability of weed being smoked by someone nearby. 

    

My husband, who is an expert at backing in and making a tight spot fit, found us a little space between the pines trees.  There would be no chance of extending our awning, but it would just be one night.  Clearly there were no hook-ups, so no electric, or running water.  But we had the generator and some water in our tank, so we were set. 

   

Trillium Lake has no motor boats, just stand up paddle boards, kayaks and canoes.   I think this is one my newest favorite places.

Stafford and the samoyeds, Finny and Baccia, Trillium Lake on Mt. Hood, OR

After a hike around Trillium Lake, we decided to take a ride further up Mt. Hood to see the famous Timberline Lodge.  Good thing we brought our jackets, as it was about 20 degrees cooler up the mountain.

Timberline Lodge, where the movie, "The Shining" was filmed.

Finny, being a good boy at Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood

Trails up to Mt. Hood
The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) crosses Mt. Hood.

After a day of traipsing around Mt. Hood, we decided to head to the Pacific Coast.  We weren't really in the mood to stay in the Burning Man section of the campground, and since we didn't pay anything for it, no loss.