Trip Report: Silcox Hut on Mt. Hood
When: 06/11/2017
Location: Mt. Hood
Conditions: Sunny with a little wind and clouds moving in and out.
Duration: 3 miles and 2 1/2 hours
Difficulty: Moderate
Kid Friendly: Probably not
Pet Friendly: Yes!
Useful links: oregonhikers.org
The Full Report:
Having never really hiked around in crampons I decided to take a sunny Sunday to play up on Mount Hood! As an aspiring Mountaineer, I figured it was about time. I rented some mountaineering boots as well as crampons from the Tune Shop at Next Adventure and headed out!
We got a late start and didn't arrive up at Timberline until roughly 1:30. Parking is ample in the main lot and gives you easy access to the snow. If you head straight towards Hood from the parking lot there will be a snow trail that heads up the mountain. I chose to keep my dog Harold on a leash for the majority of the climb until we were further up.
The weather was wonderful and stomping around in crampons was great! On either side, you will walk past little hills that families are sledding down. You might also see an occasional snowboarder or skier coming down the mountain to your left.
The trail is wide and clearly marked with small round orange signs that say, "Climbers Trail". It splits up in different places but then rejoins the main trail.
The original plan was to make it up somewhere by the Palmer Snowfield, but with the late start and the fact I had to be back sooner than later, I decided to just hike for a bit (about 1.5 miles) and turn around at a certain time. Harold was very grateful being as he was exhausted from running up the trail then back down in typical puppy fashion.
Heading back down was easy but I was thankful I brought my trekking poles because I am not the most coordinated person.
All and all just getting up on the snow and walking as far as you are comfortable is a great way to get your "snow legs" if you will. As well as begin to get comfortable with elevation gain.
The Full Report:
Having never really hiked around in crampons I decided to take a sunny Sunday to play up on Mount Hood! As an aspiring Mountaineer, I figured it was about time. I rented some mountaineering boots as well as crampons from the Tune Shop at Next Adventure and headed out!
We got a late start and didn't arrive up at Timberline until roughly 1:30. Parking is ample in the main lot and gives you easy access to the snow. If you head straight towards Hood from the parking lot there will be a snow trail that heads up the mountain. I chose to keep my dog Harold on a leash for the majority of the climb until we were further up.
The weather was wonderful and stomping around in crampons was great! On either side, you will walk past little hills that families are sledding down. You might also see an occasional snowboarder or skier coming down the mountain to your left.
The trail is wide and clearly marked with small round orange signs that say, "Climbers Trail". It splits up in different places but then rejoins the main trail.
The original plan was to make it up somewhere by the Palmer Snowfield, but with the late start and the fact I had to be back sooner than later, I decided to just hike for a bit (about 1.5 miles) and turn around at a certain time. Harold was very grateful being as he was exhausted from running up the trail then back down in typical puppy fashion.
Heading back down was easy but I was thankful I brought my trekking poles because I am not the most coordinated person.
All and all just getting up on the snow and walking as far as you are comfortable is a great way to get your "snow legs" if you will. As well as begin to get comfortable with elevation gain.