McNeil Point - 7/21

[awildman]

In an effort to keep my trail legs while I'm back in Portland, Bill, Oscar and I headed up to Mt. Hood to hike McNeil Point. After a week of dour woods and hungry mosquitoes, this hike was just heaven. We hiked via Bald Mountain from the Top Spur TH, climbed the west face of McNeil Point on the climber trail, and came down on the McNeil Point Trail. The flowers are going gangbusters on the south face of Bald Mountain and are generally good in the whole area.

Tons of wildflowers, great views up and down, and perfect weather. Plus, we found a pair of soggy tighty whities on the Timberline Trail. How great is that?!


Bill and Mt. Hood


wildflowers on McNeil Point


always time for a nap


McNeil Point ridgeline


McNeil Point trail


someone lost their panties


lots of avalanche lilies in the forest


trying to stay cool


Classic view of Hood from the ridge approach

[retired jerry]

Nice to see the snow melting off.

I bet the McNeil Point trail was difficult at places.

[adamschneider]

I might head up there tomorrow... I've always gone DOWN the scramble trail, not up, but maybe I'll reverse it for a change of pace.

Last year I waited until August, and by that time Bald Mountain had been completely fried by the sun. The heather up top was mostly cooked too.

[tomoforegon]

They look like Calvin Klein's...but not my size.

[awildman]

I might head up there tomorrow... I've always gone DOWN the scramble trail, not up, but maybe I'll reverse it for a change of pace.

Last year I waited until August, and by that time Bald Mountain had been completely fried by the sun. The heather up top was mostly cooked too.

You should go. Bald Mountain is just lovely right now and there are pockets of heather, lupine, indian paintbrush, and other flowers whose names I don't know all up and down the ridge. Flowers are so difficult to photograph well, especially when there are full hillsides of them.

[awildman]

They look like Calvin Klein's...but not my size.

And aren't yours maroon?

[awildman]

I bet the McNeil Point trail was difficult at places.

Not if you're confident on snow and are not super sensitive to "exposure." There are some really well-defined boot tracks across the snowfields that are easy to walk on, particularly if you use hiking poles. The traverses look worse than they actually are, IMHO, but everyone has their own comfort level.

[adamschneider]

I was up there today. Lots of snow, but easy to follow the trail.

I also bushwhacked over to Cairn Basin; LOTS of snow there, not so easy to follow the trail...

[HikerFam]

This one has been a big one on my list, gonna try and hit it up in a few weeks

[jeffstatt]

They look like Calvin Klein's...but not my size.

And aren't yours maroon?

Man I was wondering what happened to those?!! A night that started in a Tux at Timberline, I woke up in the morning in nothing but a Kimono and flip flops at the base of Ramona Falls. Did you happen to find a bow tie?