Mount Hood Sledding
Looking for a little sledding on Mount Hood this winter season? The big hill’s got some nice runs. See below . . .
Sledding at White River Sno Park, Jan. 2012.
- White River Sno-Park — About 4 miles north of US 26 on Oregon 35 just south of Mt. Hood Meadows, the White River Sno-Park is great for easy, fun and free sledding on Mount Hood with little ones. The closest hill is just a five-minute walk up the snowy road from the parking lot; bigger and better hills are just a little farther along. Because it’s also a popular skiing and snowshoeing spot, White River can be a touch crowded, but it’s expansive enough that there’s room enough for everyone. And with an incredible view of the mountain as backdrop, there’s little to complain about. (It doesn’t cost anything to sled here other than a Sno-Park permit. If you buy a permit from a DMV, they’re $3; most vendors that sell them jack them up to $5.)
- Little John Sno-Park — At 3,700 feet just 30 miles south of Hood River on Oregon 35, this free Sno-Park (free sledding on Mount Hood except for the Sno-Park permit) is fairly low in elevation, so if it’s a low snow year the pickings can be slim. But when there is snow, the sledding looks like good fun. There’s also an old log warming hut.
- Summit Ski Area — Mount Hood’s oldest ski area is also home to a tubing area. You can’t bring your own sled, but for $20, adults get a tube from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. M-F; kids 48″ and under are $10. Weekend and holiday prices for the kids are the same, but for adults it’s $25. Summit is just east of Government Camp. Summit also operates Snow Bunny, a little Sno-Park next door, where you can tube (not sled) for $20 all day; kids under 48″ are $10.
- Cooper Spur Mountain Resort — A sleepy but quaint little resort on the beautiful north side of Mount Hood, Cooper Spur is home to a tubing park with a rope tow. Ten bucks for the morning or afternoon, which includes some great views of the north side of Mount Hood on the drive up from Hood River.
- Mt. Hood Skibowl — The closest ski area to Portland is also home to a snow tubing area. Cost is $25 for adults for three hours, $20 for juniors; an all-day tube ticket is $50. The area includes a tube conveyor for heading back up the hill. In addition to regular tubing, Skibowl also offers Cosmic Tubing on weekend nights with laser lights, black lights, music and more.
- Other Sno Parks and Areas — The Forest Service also lists Sledding and Tubing as activities at these other Mount Hood Sno Parks: Government Camp Summit Sno Park and Multorpor Sno Park. I’ve also seen reports of sledding opportunities at Trillium Lake, near the Hemlock Trail in Government Camp and elsewhere.
On Mount Hood — On Sale
Know a fan of Mount Hood? A skier, a climber, a camper, a hiker? Someone who loves Timberline Lodge, Cooper Spur, Mt. Hood Meadows, Hood River Valley apples and pears? Someone who loves to read about amazing people and places?
If so, On Mount Hood: A Biography of Oregon’s Perilous Peak may be the perfect gift this Christmas.
And between now and Dec. 31, 2012, signed copies of On Mount Hood are available for just $15 (plus shipping, if applicable) direct from this site. Simply get in touch through the contact page and you’ll be on your way to making someone smile big this Christmas.
Mount Hood for the first time
I don’t know if a lot of people remember the very first time they saw Mount Hood, but I do.
It was 15 years ago this October, and Amy and I had just spent a few days driving up the coast from California to start the next chapter in Oregon. We cut inland at Lincoln City, made our way over to I-5, and then headed to Portland. It wasn’t exactly a bluebird day, but the sun shone and the patchy clouds revealed plenty of blue sky.
And then, right about at the Terwilliger Curves, off in the distance, white with new snow, sharp and defined in the clear Oregon air, simply breathtaking — Mount Hood. It was a site like nothing I’d ever seen before.
Over the past 15 years, I’ve seen Mount Hood from all kinds of angles and in every season, every one unique and amazing. I think this time of year, however, though views of the mountain can be fleeting, is my favorite.
Although it’s raining something fierce now, last Thursday was simply too nice not to step out into, so Spence and I saddled up for a lunchtime ride to the park. It was one of those fantastic fall days in Oregon, blue and bright, the kind of day you go out and grab and hold on to so the long winter ahead won’t feel quite so long; a day very close to the one that greeted us when we rolled into Portland the first time 15 years ago.
And even though you can’t see it in this picture, the mountain was out and amazing, just as it had been then.
My camera didn’t capture Mount Hood, but it’s there, way off through the trees.
On Mount Hood: The Paperback
Though it’s not really my bag, it is part of my job to spread the word about On Mount Hood.
And so today, just a quick note and a very early save the date: the paperback version of On Mount Hood: A Biography of Oregon’s Perilous Peak will be released by Sasquatch Books on Tuesday, April 23, 2013. The next night, a celebration kickoff at Powell’s City of Books — and not the Hawthorn store, which was great for the launch of the book in 2011, but the big daddy at 1005 W. Burnside in Portland.
From the Sasquatch Books Spring 2013 catalog:
Brave on the Page Launch Reading
A few weeks ago, I first posted about Brave on the Page: Oregon Writers on Craft and the Creative Life, a collection of interviews and and essays from 42 Oregon authors, edited by Laura Stanfill. Laura had asked me to be part of the project, and I gladly obliged.
The book’s been available since early October, but the official launch reading is happening this weekend. It will be at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 3, at Fulton Park Community Center in Southwest Portland. (68 Southwest Miles Street). I won’t be reading at this event, but a whole bunch of other writers will be, including Liz Prato, Michael Gettel-Gilmartin, Duncan Ellis, Laura Stanfill, Kristen Forbes, Joanna Rose, Stevan Allred, Steve Denniston, Bart King, Nancy Townsley, and Gigi Little.
The event is free, will last about an hour, and will include some light refreshments as well. So if you’re into writing, reading, and Oregonians who do a little of both, this will be the place to be this Saturday. Find out more at Laura’s Forest Avenue Press.
On MOUNT HOOD 