Weekend Ski trip

In the Gorge

This weekend we had the good luck in not having any more rain. This last calendar year we received over 50 inches of rain and the month of December was over 10 inches. So having a clear weekend was nice for a change. I drove up for a little skiing and I took the Columbia River route up to Mt Hood. As always I stopped in Hood River and the coffee shop 'Ground'. This route is a little longer than taking the highway 26 route, but there is a lot less traffic and not the long crawl heading back, since Hwy 26 can become quite clogged with cars. The route is mostly along the river and there are nice views, very little in the way of construction so it is very natural looking. Except for the Bonneville Dam, the river is about what it looked like before settlers arrived.

On average it takes about an hour to get to Hood River, then about 30 minutes to the ski area. It is a little over an hour if you would drive 26, but a lot more traffic. The only place to ski is really on Mt Hood, there isn't enough snow on the lower mountains. Skiing to the south or north is available but it is a longer drive. Mt Hood is a nice area and is relatively quick to get to, bad thing is most people go there since there is no where else in the immediate area and the runs can be steep since you are on a volcano...

Main street in Hood River