Longest Vertical, Night Skiing/Riding Highlight Seasons At Mt. Hood Resorts
The Pacific Northwest has gotten pummeled by early-season storms, especially on the ramparts of Mt. Hood -- Oregon's highest point and home to four ski and snowboard areas.
Snow stays all year on the extinct volcano that tops out at 11,245 feet. So, as usual, skiers and riders got to carve turns at Timberline well into September this season because the resort keeps its high-altitude Palmer Snowfields open all summer, ideal for racing camps.
As this winter snows arrived, the most dramatic development has been the completion of the nation's longest trail that connects Timberline snowfields to Summit Pass ski area by way of 4,540 vertical feet and 4-1/4 trail miles, ending near the town of Government Camp. A shuttle returns to the Timberline base.
Aside from the new trail, Timberline has added a covered magic carpet at Summit Pass, and expanded its night skiing options with lights added to a dozen trails and two terrain parks under the Pucci chairlift.
Big news at Mt. Hood Meadows -- a circuitous 40-minute drive from Timberline -- is it's now in the Indy Pass network. Hoodoo and Mt. Ashland are fellow Indy Oregonian mountains that can be had for two days free with the national pass.
The 2,150-acre layout goes in all directions, fed from two distinct parking lots. There's ample jibbing space on a half-dozen terrain parks, and the mountain boasts an off-piste selection in Heather Canyon off the mountain's north shoulder. Night skiing runs on selected Saturdays and Sundays.
Just west of Government Camp sits Mt. Hood Skibowl. Touted as having the nation's largest night skiing acreage with 36 runs, Skibowl now has a night season pass good for seven days a week. During the day, the chutes and bowls below Skibowl and Tom Dick peaks can stand up to any.
This season, the resort has joined with neighbor Timberline in the Mt. Hood Fusion Pass that also includes Powder Alliance mountains.
Take a half-hour drive northeast from Government Camp to Cooper Spur, one of the West's coziest -- and oldest -- family slopes. Opened in 1927 (a year before Mt. Hood Skibowl), Cooper Spur retains its original vibe on 50 acres and 400 feet of drop. The sole double chairlift is open Friday-Sunday all season, with night skiing on Fridays.
