HOOD RIVER MEADOWS trailhead provides access to great hiking opportunities, including up-close views of Umbrella Falls (above) and Sahalie Falls (below). For those who are unfamiliar with the Mt. Hood Meadows Ski Resort, Hood River Meadows is the lowest-elevation parking lot in the resort and is easily accessible from Highway 35. Hikers have their choice at either parking at Hood River Meadows or up at the lot located at the resort’s main lodge.
HOOD RIVER MEADOWS trailhead provides access to great hiking opportunities, including up-close views of Umbrella Falls (above) and Sahalie Falls (below). For those who are unfamiliar with the Mt. Hood Meadows Ski Resort, Hood River Meadows is the lowest-elevation parking lot in the resort and is easily accessible from Highway 35. Hikers have their choice at either parking at Hood River Meadows or up at the lot located at the resort’s main lodge.
Winter is probably my favorite time of year in the Columbia River Gorge. Seeing as I am an avid snowboarder and cross country skier — and just about nothing else, as far as sports go — that’s pretty to understand why. For me, taking a smooth, quiet run down a Mt. Hood Meadows hill dusted with a few inches of new is one of the best experiences in the world.
It’s easy to be lulled into a false sense of security that the ground beneath you is as smooth as the run you’re taking. It’s not. Beneath your wool socks and boots lies a world of snowed-in mountain streams, saplings, and boulders suspended in a deep, hiemal slumber… or in this year’s case, more like a catnap.
Seeing that hidden world exposed is one of the many reasons why you should head up to the resort and check out the Umbrella-Sahalie Falls loop hike, which crosses under dormant lift chairs, over the aforementioned landscape features, and near two very scenic waterfalls (even by Gorge standards): Sahalie (sometimes spelled Sahale) and Umbrella falls.
I like this hike for a variety of reasons: it’s accessible and has ample parking, the trailhead and trails are well-signed, there are expansive views (not really any of Mt. Hood until the very end), the hike through the forested section is pleasant, and the waterfalls are worth the trip alone. You’re also getting a decent amount of exercise in, as the trail has a good, steady, moderate incline for about a mile and a half before you reach the first waterfall. The main drawback is that the trail is popular, but even when the parking lot was packed this past Sunday, I encountered only one family and a handful of couples on the entire, two-hour hike.
The trailhead starts at Hood River Meadows (HRM), which is the lowest-elevation parking lot in the resort. The trailhead begins right before the ski area parking lot (a gate indicates that you’ve gone too far), and is signed as the Elk Meadows/Sahalie Falls Trailhead.
Some hiking websites/guidebooks will direct you to the resorts lodge to start the hike, which you can do, but I highly discourage for a few reasons: A.) it’s farther to drive, B.) the hike turns into an out-and-back instead of a loop, C.) instead of having the uphill section at the beginning of your hike, you now have it at the end, and D.) the hikes are pretty much the same length: 4.2 miles roundtrip for the out-and-back and 4.6 miles for the loop (according to oregonhikers.org… the Forest Service website doesn’t seem to give a total distance tally and I learned that the pedometer on my phone doesn’t appear to be accurate… apparently I haven’t been exercising as much as I thought). If all that sounds good to you instead of terrible, then by all means, have at it.
The hike starts in the trees through some sandy soil on a single-track trail — make sure you check out the interpretive exhibits at the trailhead regarding the Newton flood that hit Mt. Hood in the early fall of 2000. After about a third of a mile, take a left at the trail sign that directs hikers to Umbrella Falls.
The trail winds through a forest of Douglas firs dotted with Old Man’s Beard lichens, and broken up by the occasional alpine meadow, which are actually ski trails. Soon enough, you’ll pass beneath the Hood River Meadows chairlift, the chairs covered up, presumably to protect the seats from the elements. The trail gets narrow in points, crosses some quaint mountain brooks, and some burrowing animals have dug more than a few holes that it would probably rearrange your ankle if you stepped in them — so pay attention.
Eventually, you’ll pass a sign that directs you a mile down to Sahalie Falls, but don’t head down there just yet. Continue on the Umbrella Falls trail for another third of mile to meet the trail’s namesake: a gorgeous, wide, waterfall created by the East Fork of the Hood River gurgling over about 60 or 70 feet of rock to a shallow pool below great for shin-deep wading in August. A bridge over the river provides a good spot for pictures. At this point, you’re only about 200 feet from the main lodge’s parking lot.
Backtrack into the forest to the sign you passed earlier directing you to Sahalie Falls and head down that way. In less than a mile, you’ll hear the sounds of rushing water as the East Fork begins to meet the trail and then run parallel to it. A small side trail provides a viewpoint to the falls, which are narrower than Umbrella Falls, but by no means less majestic. More intrepid hikers will want to scramble down to the plunge pool, which would be great spot to cool off in the summer, but be careful! The “trail” down to falls is made of the same sandy soil you’ve hiked on the whole way here and one wrong move could send you slip-slidin’ away (as I experienced) down to the bottom of the trail.
After dusting yourself off, either continue on the trail back to the yard, or head onto the side road (and check out the old bridge right below the falls) that will also lead you back to the car. An alpine meadow and Mt. Hood come into view in the last few hundred of the trail, capping off a great hike.
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