Mt. Hood: Eliot crossing, 2014 update (glacier AND ropes)

[mjirving]

...as I indicated in the video were options multiple times.

To be frank, at least yesterday, Coe and Ladd were sketchier than Eliot...the creek parts anyway.

Also, the cairns that were there led pretty much to where we crossed and up along the other side, so be aware not to blindly follow the rock cairns. With your comments being so firm (I've never been up higher so I can't speak to it directly) others may want to knock those cairns over and start a realignment of them.

[IslandCougGirl]

Do you have any pics of the Coe and Ladd crossings or can give a little more info?

[mjirving]

Do you have any pics of the Coe and Ladd crossings or can give a little more info?

I'll be posting a trip report tonight that will have a link to a detailed GoPro video of all the major crossings and areas of interest...stay tuned!

[rainrunner]

mjirving and adamschneider, thank you both for the effort you took in documenting the crossing. My son, IslandCougirl and I crossed without incident this week. The printed paper we had was used by us, passed on to another mom/son and they passed it on as well. The mom/son loved the commentary from the field guide and wanted the writers to know how much they appreciated the information.
Ann

[IslandCougGirl]

And I will say that CCW is a lot less scary than if I tried going CW. Thanks for the excellent info that made this much more doable. I ended up leaving the mountain Friday and took Elk Cove down to Laurance Lake and getting a ride back up to Cloud Cap. Lack of sleep, not eating from nausea, and biting flies made it rather miserable for me.

[mjirving]

Cool...glad it worked out well!

[Peder]

Goran - The ropes were still there Friday! The most direct crossing is to jump the stream just below the ropes (cairns - but it is a long jump!); otherwise go 200 - 300 yards upstream to a plateau where you can either rock jump across two branches of the stream or wade across. The two sets of ropes on either side of the washout are directly across from each other.

[PNWhiker]

I pulled these signs down from the Cloud Cap TH on Wednesday:

The official USFS notice had also been pulled down from the second sign post and replaced with the paper plates, which is just plain reckless - after all, it's a safety warning and no hiker should presume to determine whether other hikers see that information. While I understand the frustration people have had with the long-delayed restoration of the Timberline Trail at the Eliot crossing (wrote about it at length in a recent post on my blog, the good news is that the USFS has a plan to construct a new route over the next year or two. Stay tuned for opportunities to help out on the project in 2016 -- TKO will be a leading partner with the USFS.

Until then, I would caution less rugged/experienced hikers [read: most all of us] about making the crossing. It's potentially quite dangerous, especially if you're in a group, as the main hazard is rolling debris coming down the slope. I certainly would not do it, myself. Crossing the glacier is even more dangerous, especially for those who don't realize they're on a glacier (which extends all the way to where you see the Eliot Branch emerging). Finally, please do not post paper plates on the TH signs announcing that the trail is open, as you'll be encouraging folks who are not prepared to handle something like this.

Tom

Tom, I hadn't looked at this post in some time. When I read your post I just about fell out of my chair. Let's do all we can to support the FS in completing this LONG overdue work. And, thanks to you for your efforts to help it along!

[adamschneider]

2015 Update: I went up there on Saturday, and everything I wrote in 2014 still applies (except that the snowfields on the glacier are basically gone). The map is still valid too.

And check this out... I was shocked to find that the place where I rock-hopped across Eliot Creek last year still looks exactly the same!

That says something about how little precipitation there's been in the last 12 months; I'm guessing that in a normal year, with a good storm or two, stuff would get moved around more.

[sherman.j]

Just did Timberline Trail last weekend, and noticed in the Oregonian that the FS is thinking about re-rerouting the trail:

The U.S. Forest Service is proposing to construct approximately 1.5 miles of new trail by-passing the closed Elliot crossing by dropping down into the forest from near the 6,000-foot level at Cloud Cap to 5,500 feet. The new trail would not have a bridge across Eliot Creek.

Read this for more information: http://www.oregonlive.com/travel/index. ... cart_river