Mt. Hood - Pearly Gates
Route Details
Area - Mt. Hood, OR
Access - Super easy! Access is from Timberline ski resort and lodge. Climbers parking is in the parking lot to the right below the trailhead. After the snow melts on the lower mountain (usually by mid to late June) the trail follows the obvious path towards Palmer (used as a service road to the hut below Palmer). Earlier in the year when there is still snow from the parking lot you can take a slightly more direct route, though be aware of downhill skiers and resort policies. See guides section below for more details.
Total Trip Time - 5-7 hours
Total Distance - 7 miles
Main Ski descent - 5300 ft
Elevation Gain/Loss - 5300 ft
Max Slope Angle - 45-50 °
Guides
FATMAP (below)
Local Beta - Timberline Lodge has historic and comfy lodging to make for a super convenient alpine (early morning) start. There's a historic solid wood ping pong table and shuffle board in the Barlow room just to the right after the main entrance. Make sure to stock up on last minute supplies when passing through Government Camp.
Trip Report 4/29/2023
Mt. Hood is a classic PNW volcano with a twist. It has a ski resort halfway up the mountain that stays open during the summer months. And halfway up the mountain at 6k feet elevation Timberline Lodge, one of the coolest mountain lodges ever built in North America making it uniquely easy to get a good night's rest and also get an alpine start, all with a peak to car 5k feet ski descent. It's little wonder then why my ski buddy Antoine who grew up hut to hut skiing in the European Alps is such a big fan of Mt. Hood! To be honest, it has grown on me too.
Antoine, Olly, and I spent Friday night in a room at the lodge, and woke at around 4:30 am. We were skinning by 5:30 am with the alpen glow just starting to shine.
We made good time, passing multiple parties as we climbed the Palmer and gained the snowfield below Crater Rock. We were also able to keep our skis on longer than other parties which helped us maintain the tempo.
Antoine was able to keep his skis on longer than me (he has ski crampon super skills). We met up and took a quick brake at the natural resting spot just right of the Triangle Moraine where many other climbers were also taking a break.
Climbers in front of us were taking both the Pearly Gates and Old Chute routes. We opted for the Pearly Gates as the sun had just started to shine on the ice and we figured the icefall hazard was low for the next hour or so.
We had made it to the base of the Pearly Gates in 4 hrs, not too shabby. By this point most climbers were taking the Old Chute route, so we had the Pearly Gates route to ourselves.
The snow was rock hard but softening quickly under the hot sun. Once out of the ice chute there was only a tiny bit more to go before reaching the summit. I was surprised to see how narrow the summit was compared to Mt. Rainier. There was barely enough space for all of us to take in the view before heading down.
We took our time getting ready to ski down, hoping the sun would sufficiently bake the snow to make it a little less sketchy off the top of the West Crater Rim descent.
The first couple turns off the West Crater Rim were the tricky part. After that it was easy peasy. Olly took a tumble and fortnuately wasn't injured. Once we were all out of the steep section we let it rip on PNW corn for the final 4k ft to the car.
