Bald Mountain via Lolo Pass Hike – Mount Hood

On this fall hike to Bald Mountain’s summit in foggy conditions, we were rewarded when the clouds lifted, revealing spectacular views of Mount Hood.

distance: 6.6 miles (out and back)
elevation gain: 1,400 ft.
difficulty: moderate
drive time from Portland: 1 hour 30 minutes
trailhead: Lolo Pass
parking pass: none
hike description: OregonHikers.org – Bald Mountain from Lolo Pass

The Hike

From the trailhead at Lolo Pass, we started hiking on the Pacific Crest Trail, which enters the forest next to a small campsite. Almost immediately, the trail passes through a formerly logged area where rhododendrons grow thick along both sides of the path. In early summer, this stretch becomes a tunnel of blooms — but on this trip, it framed the fog as we hiked uphill.

Once back in the forest, the first of ten switchbacks begins as the trail climbs along the ridge. Rhodies continue to fill the understory, and in early summer, the whole forest pops with color. Today, touches of fall color showed on the bare branches of shrubs alongside the trail, and openings in the trees gave us peeks at fog drifting through the hills.

Near the top of the ridge, the trail levels out and the grade becomes more moderate. Several viewpoints open up along this stretch, offering glimpses of Mount Hood and the surrounding foothills — when the weather cooperates, at least.

Just under three miles in, we reached a small junction with the Top Spur Trail, and shortly after, a larger intersection marked by a wilderness boundary sign. Normally, this is where hikers fill out self-issued permits, but with the current shortage of rangers, the box is currently empty. The Pacific Crest Trail and Timberline Trail meet here, making this a busy crossing during peak season.

For this hike, we continued straight on the Timberline Trail toward the Muddy Fork. The use trail to the top of Bald Mountain isn’t marked, but it’s obvious — about one-tenth of a mile past the big junction. From here, the trail steepens significantly as it climbs to the summit. There are usually a few downed trees to navigate; about halfway up, the trail splits, and staying to the right avoids the worst of the blowdown.

At the top, a short push through a stand of small shrubs leads to the open viewpoint at the former fire lookout site. The edge drops away sharply here, so we stepped carefully as we set down our packs. When we arrived, everything was completely socked in — a white wall of fog where Mount Hood should’ve been.

We decided to linger and have lunch, hoping for a bit of magic. And sure enough, while we were eating, the fog slowly thinned, then lifted entirely, revealing an incredible view of Mount Hood coated in fresh snow. One of my friends had never been to this viewpoint before, and at first I was disappointed she wouldn’t get to see it — so when the mountain suddenly appeared, we all cheered.

The photo below shows Cathedral Ridge, where the McNeil Point rock shelter is located — one of my favorite hikes on Mount Hood.

Mount Hood rising above a blanket of clouds and fog, creating a magical, almost otherworldly scene.

A few more hikers joined us as the sky continued to open. After soaking it in and taking plenty of photos, we packed up and headed back the way we came, grateful for a day that turned out better than expected.