Dashing Through the Snow
December 3rd, 2012
Fireworks at Mt. Hood Ski Bowl, courtesy of MtHoodTerritory.com
It’s beginning to look a lot like winter — especially when you take a peek at the peak of Mount Hood on Portland’s horizon. Just a 90-minute drive from the downtown, the mountain sits right in the city’s backyard and makes for a heck of a winter playground. In fact, there are a number of different ways to enjoy Mount Hood’s wonderland of snow.
For skiing and snowboarding, Mount Hood Meadows, Mt. Hood Ski Bowl and Timberline can’t be beat. Meadows, with 11 lifts, 85 runs and a three-mile stretch of uninterrupted downhill, has a trail for every level of skier. Ski Bowl, with the largest night ski area in the country, keeps snow-hungry riders shushing for hours. And Timberline, a national historic landmark, is as popular for its relaxing lodge as for its runs.
Courtesy of MtHoodTerritory.com
Cross-country and snowshoe trails zigzag the mountain, letting outdoor enthusiasts reconnect with nature while traversing the well maintained paths. Mt. Hood National Forest keeps an exhaustive list — bet you can’t ski (or shoe) them all! The Forest Service also maintains the mountain’s 10 snowmobile trails, some of which run parallel to wilderness boundaries and provide breathtaking sights.
Meanwhile, downhill daredevils may prefer to sled or tube down the mountain. All of the areas offer fast-paced thrills, but nothing competes with the the black-light bedazzlement that is cosmic tubing at Skibowl’s Snow Tube & Adventure Park. The course is perfect for frosty frolicking — especially when they cap it off with fireworks, ensuring that on Mount Hood, everyone has a blast.
Tags: mount hood, skiing, snowboarding, winter, winter sports
