Dog Mountain - Sunday, April 21, 2013

Dog Mountain is one of the classic hikes of the Columbia Gorge. Rising almost 3,000 vertical feet, it can be seen from many viewpoints to the east and west. In the late spring and summer it's one of the most popular places to be in the Gorge. But on a stormy day it's still possible to find some solitude - even in April. I headed to the Dog for the third time in 2013 on Sunday, April 21st with my friends Dave and Andy from the Pentaquest Team.

Heading up the Dog

After getting our grub on at Gravy in Portland we cruised east on I-84, crossed the Bridge of the Gods at Cascade Locks and reached the trailhead by 9:30 a.m. The weather was mixed - the overcast sky brought occasional glimpses of blue, but a brisk wind on the river portended harsh conditions up high on the mountain. The entire upper part of the Dog remained shrouded in a thick fogbank.

I hit the trail with a 70-pound pack filled with (clean) cat litter sand  as part of my Denali conditioning, It didn't take long for Dave and Andy to race ahead. I kept a steady pace, but the extra weight on my back meant it was slow upward slog. They waited for me to catch up as the trail finished an intense series of switchbacks early on, and then again before the final push above treeline. Thanks to Dave's motivating words (something about "manning up") and a few PowerBar gummy cola chews (best energy fuel ever), I kept going rather than descending before the summit.

Sweeping vista from the summit

Up until we broke from the trees we were largely sheltered from the wind. But as soon as we emerged for the final half mile, everything went to hell. The wind picked up with gusts howling between 30-40 mph and a pea soup fog greatly diminished visibility. I normally bring a pair of gloves and a balaclava in my pack - even on a sunny day - but on this day I left the essentials at home to make room for sterile cat litter. By the time I met up with Dave and Andy on the summit my face was numb. Thankfully I had brought a light down jacket.

Since we couldn't see much, our stay at the summit was brief. We opted for the Augspurger loop down the backside of the mountain to avoid retracing our steps. I lost sight of Dave and Andy after a quarter mile and didn't see them again until the parking lot. The wind continued to gust and brought rain down on the trail from the trees. I had to slow down in a few places to avoid slipping in the mud. Finally I dropped low enough to escape the wind, and then the sun came out. It's amazing how a drop of a few hundred feet in elevation can sometimes bring entirely different weather conditions. Towards the trailhead a few wildflowers could be seen, including Indian Paintbrush. Within weeks the mountain will be covered in color. Surprisingly I saw fewer than ten people during the descent.

View on the descent near the trailhead

And then I reached the car. It felt damn good to take off the backpack. My Mountain Hardwear BMG 105 is well-designed, but there's no way that much weight will leave you unscathed. The Dog is close enough to Hood River that it's within the gravitational pull of Full Sail Brewery in Hood River, so we went there for an IPA before going home.

Key lesson learned: always bring gloves (and a balaclava).