| Timberline Trail | |
|---|---|
| View of the north side of Mount Hood from the Timberline Trail | |
| Length | 40.7 miles (65.5 km) |
| Location | Mount Hood, Oregon, United States |
| Use | Hiking |
| Elevation Change | 9,000 feet (2,700 m)[1] |
| Highest point | Lamberson Spur 7,300 feet (2,200 m) |
| Lowest point | Sandy River 3,240 feet (990 m)[2] |
| Season | Summer to early Fall |
| Months | Mid-July through early October |
| Hazards | stream crossings |
Timberline Trail is a hiking trail around Mount Hood in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is in mostly wilderness but also goes near Timberline Lodge and Mount Hood Meadows ski area.
Contents |
The Timberline Trail was constructed in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps. Sections of the trail have changed due to damage caused by landslides and washouts since then.[1]
The trail, Forest Service trail #600, shares eleven miles (18 km) with the Pacific Crest Trail and alternates above and below the timberline. The trail is rerouted periodically due to washouts and to avoid sensitive high altitude and alpine meadows. It has a handful of informal campsites for backpackers, although camping is permitted anywhere outside the meadows and at least 200 feet (61 m) from water bodies. There are several hazardous stream crossings, especially on the west side and at landslide-prone Eliot Branch near Cloud Cap which closed the trail there in 2007. The trail has several significant vertical ascents and descents totaling 9,000 feet (2,700 m), mostly at canyon crossings. The trail is accessible from Timberline Lodge, which has free parking for backpackers, and numerous connecting trails.
The hike is typically completed in three to five days, but some ambitious hikers complete it in one or two days.
Several dangers to hikers are present: hypothermia, falling, and drowning. Areas of special concern are the Sandy River crossing, which caused a hiker death in 2004,[3] the Eliot Creek, which washed out and closed a section of the trail in 2007,[4] and the Muddy Fork section, which washed out in 2007 and has deteriorated in the past year to a point where it is "barely passable" according to a US Forest Service sign. The Sandy River can be (as of August 2008) crossed on a makeshift log bridge made of three logs tied together with twine. The Eliot Creek section is technically closed, however, some hikers disregard this and scramble on the loose soil and scree despite the risk of a great fall or landslide. Other hikers choose to cross the Eliot Creek much lower by going off trail (and adding hours to their hiking time) or higher (onto the Eliot Glacier). The Muddy Fork section can be avoided by taking the Pacific Crest Trail (trail 2000) from Bald Mountain to trail 797 to Ramona Falls. This not only makes the hike much safer, but also shortens the total hike by 2.4 miles (3.9 km). A common problem with this shortcut is that the signs at the Bald Mountain crossroads mislabel the PCT due to a re-routing of the PCT several years ago.