Conditions Report
photos and words by Mamood
Mt. Hood is about 60 miles east of Portland, Oregon and probably has the best and most consistent summer skiing in North America. Lift tickets are $62/ day and skiing is from 7 AM-2 PM.
Snow is generally hard packed (salted) from 7 AM to around 9:30 AM ( depending on the daily temperature and weather)and a very nice corn from 10AM to 12 PM. It usually gets very
soft and slushy from about 12 Pm to closing.
The best time for gate training is from opening till about 11 AM and you will run in to national teams from all over the world practicing during this period.
The best free skiing is from about 9 AM to 12 PM when the snow is in a corn transition. Snowboarders usually come out about 11:00 AM and stick around till about 3:00 PMor so as they have their own small rope tow on the lower half of the Palmer snow field where there are major jumps, jibs and rails.
On August 20th, I drove up from a cloudy Portland to a major treat above the clouds and skied from 9 AM to 12:00 PM. It was 45 deg. F at 9:00 AM at the top of the chair and the skiing was hard packed first but by 10:00 AM it turned in to outstanding corn and some of the best snow that I have skied there in late August. The top of the Palmer chair is at 8,500 feet and top of Mt. Hood is at 11,250 feet.
There are plenty of activities after skiing such as hanging out by the pool at Timberline Lodge or hiking, biking, wind surfing in Hood River ( 40 minutes away) or rafting down the Deschutes River ( about 2 hrs away). If you want to stay skiing over the summer or simply refine your technique during off season, I highly recommend making the trip.
