Climb the Mt. Hood Summit
Government Camp, Oregon
Details
Distance
7 miles
Elevation Gain
5239 ft
Route Type
Out-and-Back
Description
Added by Nolan Smith
Summit Mount Hood for amazing views from the highest peak in Oregon (11,250 ft) and a true sense of accomplishment and challenge.
Starting at 6,000 ft of elevation at Timberline Lodge, start your climb up the south side of Mt. Hood. If you head out at noon, in 6 hours you can make it about an hour past the last ski lift, called Palmer, where you can set up camp for the night. You may need to dig out a flat spot for your tent.
Leave early the next morning for the summit, by 4am. This "final ascent" is at least 600 ft of ice climbing, so be sure to have crampons and two ice axes. With only one you risk falling on the descent. You can make the summit by about 8:30am - just be sure to be off again by 11am.
The view from the summit is amazing. You can see nearly the entire Cascade range once you hike along the summit ridge to the true summit. There are some more technical climbs near the summit for you truly skilled climbers, such as the Pearly Gates. It will be worth every breath you take!
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Reviews
Great experience and amazing views throughout. General mountaineering knowledge is needed however this is far less technical than Rainier. We climbed the Pearly Gates variation and enjoyed it a lot! Be sure to check in at the climber station and to ensure you have proper equipment. Overall we started our climb at 2am and were down back to the car by 10am.
5.0
(Hiked March 22nd 2019 via south side route on the Palmer Glacier) Made a video along the way, click the following link to see a better description of conditions as of March 22nd https://youtu.be/DK6t6HbufZw We started climbing right at midnight and hiked on the East side of the ski lifts up the cat tracks to the base of Crater Rock. From here on we roped up and headed to the East side of Crater Rock towards the Devils Kitchen. As we scurried around the base of Crater Rock towards the Hogsback there was a crevasse open towards the bottom of the rock. It was open but easily crossable, I actually stepped through the snow into it whoops. After that it was smooth sailing. The snow was in great condition with minimal avalanche danger. We went up through the pearly gates and decided to turnaround before reaching the summit due to soft snow on the summit ridge. The snow on the summit ridge was not suitable for anchors from this we concluded that our summit could wait for another day. Again here is the link for the video we made along the way https://youtu.be/DK6t6HbufZw Be Safe Out There, NW Adventures
5.0
Something like 10,000 people attempt to climb Mt. Hood every year, and in fact this mountain is the second-most climbed mountain in the entire world (after Mt. Fuji in Japan). No matter the day of the week, if you attempt this during the summer you will face plenty of crowds. Be sure you get an early start and stay on-pace to avoid bottlenecking near the summit.
5.0
A great beginner summit for mountaineering. A different ascent in the spring and the summer.
4.0
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