This is the mt hood weekend itinerary we send to friends who ask, "we've got two days, what do we do?" It assumes you're staying down in Mt. Hood Village or Welches, you have a dog or wish you did, and you'd rather do a few things well than tick a list. Swap freely.
Friday evening: get there, get in the water
Leave Portland after 6 to miss the worst of the Highway 26 crawl. Stop at Joe's Donuts in Sandy for tomorrow's breakfast (they sell out early). Pick up groceries at the Sandy Fred Meyer or the Welches Thriftway. Check in, turn on the hot tub, and don't cook: El Burro Loco in Welches for tacos, or the Skyway Bar & Grill in Zigzag for smoked meat and a fire pit. Then hot tub, stars, bed. At Wildwood Basecamp the hot tub sits under big firs, and the bunkhouse means the kids or the loud friends have their own zone.
Saturday morning: a lake
Pick one. Trillium Lake is the postcard: a flat two-mile loop with the whole mountain reflected in the water, 25 minutes from the cabin. Go before 9 in summer or the lot fills. In winter the road is gated and it becomes a beautiful three-mile round-trip snowshoe from the Sno-Park on 26 (permit required). Mirror Lake is the hike: about four miles round trip from the big trailhead on Highway 26 with a modest climb to a lake under Tom Dick and Harry Mountain. Dogs on leash for both.
If it's mud season and you want dirt instead, this is the morning for Sandy Ridge. It rides in the rain.
Saturday midday: Timberline Lodge
Drive up to the lodge. It's free to walk in, and you should: the stonework, the carved animals on the newel posts, the fireplace that's taller than you. Grab lunch at the Ram's Head bar upstairs or a coffee and a walk on the paved paths above the lodge. In summer, the Magic Mile chair runs for sightseers and the wildflowers around 7,000 feet are absurd. In winter, park early, the lot fills by mid-morning on weekends.
Saturday afternoon: slow down
Back to the cabin by 3. Nap, read, let the dog sleep in the sun. This is the part people skip and then wonder why they're tired on Monday. If you want one more thing, the Wildwood Recreation Site off 26 near Welches has flat trails, an underwater fish-viewing window on the Salmon River, and picnic tables. Day-use fee.
Saturday night: cook or go out
Cook if you've got a good kitchen. A big pot of something, everyone in socks, board games from the shelf. If you go out: Mt. Hood Brewing in Government Camp for pizza and a pint, Glacier Haus for schnitzel, or the Rendezvous Grill in Welches for something nicer. Then the hot tub, again. It's the whole reason you booked a cabin instead of a hotel.
Sunday morning: the river
The Salmon River Trail, just up Salmon River Road from Zigzag, is our favorite Sunday walk on the mountain. Flat, mossy, old growth, the river right there for the dog. Walk as far as you like and turn around. Northwest Forest Pass or day fee at the trailhead. If you've got more legs, Ramona Falls is a seven-mile loop to a 120-foot fan of water over columnar basalt, but it needs a full morning and a careful creek crossing; the bridge is gone and the Sandy River is not a joke in early summer.
- Coffee: Coffee Brewsters in Welches, or the Govy General Store.
- Late checkout? Ask. Sometimes we can, sometimes the cleaners are already on the way.
- Sunday drive home: leave by 1 or after 6. The 3-to-5pm window on 26 is rough.
Golf, if that's your Sunday
Swap the river for 18 at the Mt. Hood Oregon Resort course in Welches, where the mountain looms over half the holes. We wrote up the options in golf at Mt. Hood.
That's the 48 hours. One lake, one lodge, one river, two hot tub sessions, zero rushing. If you've got a third day, the mountain rewards it; check our Mt. Hood things-to-do page for the longer list. And bring the dog. They love it more than you will.