Revision as of 13:25, 7 September 2014

Climbing up the ropes to get out of the Eliot Creek gully. (Chase)

According to the Forest Service this route is impassable, but many people are crossing it. (Jerry Adams)

Overview of high route across Eliot. Route is marked with red dots. (Jerry Adams)

East side of Eliot Canyon, where the lower crossing is (the two ropes). The two red arrows point to where the track is. Note that it goes just above some brush growing on the canyon wall. Above that, there is just loose rock. (Jerry Adams)

As you're hiking on the Timberline Trail, from the East, when you see the Cooper Spur shelter, leave the trail and go directly over to it. (Jerry Adams)

• Hikes including this location:
  • Elk Cove from Cloud Cap Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)
  • Timberline Trail around Mount Hood Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)
• Weather forecast: NWS/NOAA
• Maps: Oregon Hikers Maps Google Maps
• Latitude, Longitude: 45.3979, -121.6597
• Elevation: 6100 feet

Description

As of September 2010, this crossing is officially closed, but a number of people have successfully negotiated it. There's another route higher up. (observed 2010/09/02)

First, a long time ago there was a route that crossed at about 5900 feet elevation, which got washed out.

Then, in the few years after 2000, there was a crossing higher up at about 6200 feet elevation. Each summer a bridge was put in.

Then, in November 2006, there was a severe storm that created a 100 foot deep gully. The Forest Service officially closed the trail, but someone put in a rope on each side, and some orange flagging, and people were successfully going through. Since then this route has degraded and the Forest Service has increased its warning level. In late August 2010 a slide buried the rope on one side. If someone had been crossing there then, it would not have been good. Still, it is possible to get through.

There's another way to cross Eliot that envolves going off the main trail. The Forest Service does not recommend this, because it's off trail, and people might get lost, but it's not officially closed according to a phone conversation with a forest service employee.

It can not be recommended to do this, but here's the information so you can make your own decision based on your skill level and tolerance for risk. You might want to configure your hike so this crossing is on the first half, so if you get there and decide not to do it you can just go back the way you came.

Best description is Adam Schneider's update:

Adam's 2014 update

I should just delete this older info, which is still fairly accurate:

Map by Adam Schneider

If you're coming from the East, on the Timberline Trail you reach the Cooper Spur shelter. Get off the Timberline trail and head directly over to the shelter. Go just below the shelter and continue on the climbers trail, staying at about the same elevation, about 0.1 mile to the ridge just east of Eliot.

Take the climbers trail down into the Eliot drainage. Continue on the crude trail, following the rock cairns. At some point the rock cairns disappear. Keep going across the drainage, gaining a little elevation.

At some point you get onto the glacier. It's covered by rocks so it's not obvious you're on a glacier. There is some risk doing this - the ground is very unstable and there are sometimes slides from above. Test out the ground before stepping on it and get by this area quickly to limit exposure. Now is not the time to stop for a break.

Getting up onto the ridge on the West side is difficult. It's fairly steep with loose rock. It's easier a little higher up.

When you get up onto the West side ridge, there's a trail. It's primitive and a little hard to follow at places. The ridge is knife edge at places. Follow this trail down to the junction with the official Timberline trail.

Elevations:

Cooper Spur shelter 6800'

East side ridge 6875'

Climbers trail where it reaches bottom of drainage 6790'

Other side of drainage 7300'

Junction with Timberline Trail 6200'

An alternate is to do a road walk:

• From Cooper Spur Shelter, take the Tilly Jane Trail down to Cooper Spur Ski area - 3.5 miles
• Take the Cloud Cap Road down to Cloud Cap - 1.6 miles
• Take the Cooper Spur Road down towards Hood River - 5.1 miles
• Take the first paved road to the left, Evans Road and go on it 0.5 miles
• Take Laurance Lake Road up to Laurance Lake 3.8 miles
• Take the gravel road up to the Elk Cove Trailhead - 1 miles
• Take the Elk Cove Trail up to the Timberline Trail at Elk Cove - 4.7 miles

This saves 6 miles of the Timberline Trail.

There's a total of 10.7 miles of trail and 12 miles of road walking.

Trip Reports

• Search Trip Reports for Eliot Creek

Related Discussions / Q&A

• Search Trail Q&A for Eliot Creek

More Links

Page Contributors

• Splintercat (Tom Kloster) (primary)
• retiredjerry