Hikin’ And Bikin’ Between Zigzag And Mount Hood In May

As I was texting with the kiddo this week about his upcoming 29th (ah!) birthday, I started thinking about the trip we took for last year’s birthday and decided it was time to get it up on the blog. How else will you know about spring recreation opportunities and yummy food found near Mount Hood?

My son had made plans with a friend to do some late season snowboarding on Mount Hood but then his friend bailed on him. Naturally, I said I would love to go if he didn’t mind hanging out with his mom.

We drove down from home early in the morning on Saturday so my kiddo could go snowboarding that day. The weather was overcast and drizzly when we arrived but as is mountain weather, eventually cleared.

My plan was to snowshoe while he was up on the mountain but I had mistakenly packed poles without snow baskets (we drove his truck so I didn’t have my normal selection in my car). I did try to see if the ski shop would rent me some baskets but they didn’t have any not attached to ski poles and I, admittedly, was not motivated to get out there with ski poles. Besides, the snow was heavy and wet, not knee friendly.

So I wandered around the base of the resort and visited the lodge (used in the filming of The Shining and a handful of other films). I have lots of good memories here from hiking the Pacific Crest Trail and Timberline Trail but haven’t visited in the spring before.

There were several historical exhibits in the main area of the lodge and a room for watching a movie about the restoration of the hotel, including the re-creation of its textiles and artworks. You can read more here.

After snowboarding was exhausted for the day, we drove back down from the mountain and checked into our accommodations. He had found us a cute little rental cabin in Zigzag, a tiny community 11.5 miles west of Timberline and Mount Hood. (I think this cabin is no longer available for rent but there are plenty in the area if you do a search.)

It was a short walk (or ride) from the cabin on a gravel road to the Zigzag river.

There was a barbeque restaurant, Skyway Bar and Grill, that was also walkable so we checked it out for dinner. It had a great old-time roadside establishment ambiance and the crowd appeared to be made up of regulars.

The barbeque was mostly standard fare (first time I have seen bbq tofu on a menu) and the meat was nicely done. I had enough for leftovers scrambled with eggs the next day in the cabin.

The rest of our evening was uneventful but I did get out for a leisurely ride around the cabins and behind the Skyway Bar and Grill where a decommissioned road ran along the Zigzag and connected with another street on the other end that ran out to HWY 26. For some reason I didn’t take any pictures but here’s my track.

We woke to sunshine on Sunday! Our plan today was to separate, he would go up snowboarding again and I would do a little hiking and biking between Zig Zag and Mount Hood. The Mirror Lake Trail looked promising and there are bike trails that run between Mount Hood and Zigzag.

It had been a little hard to find good intel on trail logistics and current conditions online, so I was going in without as much information as I would like. What I could find told a story of snow and tree covered bike trails on the terrain closest to the mountain. I was worried that coming down from the mountain would mean mostly navigating the side of the highway so I looked up the schedule for the shuttle that runs along HWY 26 and planned to use that to help with my itinerary and avoid trails that would probably not be ready for riding yet or a shoulder littered with rock used during the winter months. I opted to play it safe.

I had my son drop me off on his way to the slopes, turns out that the trailhead had recently been upgraded and there were some decent bike racks. Info for a future trip…

There were patches of snow as I started out and the first section of trail was pavement. However, after crossing a sturdy wooden bridge and continuing, the snow was all but melted off the trail.

It only took about 45 minutes to hike the 2.2 miles to the lake and other hikers were minimal. This is an incredibly popular trail so I felt lucky as it was already 10:30am.

The trail on outlet side was bare but it was obvious that the loop trail around the lake would have snow. I stopped for short time to knit and have a snack.

Stormy Sky Shawl with Mariner’s yarn from Stitch n Pitch night.

As is with many popular hikes, the robber jays were anxiously awaiting to be fed.

I took the loop trail, anticipating that the walk to the other side would produce the mirrored image that the lake is known for. It wasn’t long before I heard startled screams. Hmmm? What was someone not prepared for?

Ah, not-so-trusty floating wood planks. Spring hiking is always full of wet (and cold) surprises.

The planks did continue to a side trail for what must be iconic views. A slight breeze interrupted a true mirror image but the view was still worth braving wet feet.

After the loop I headed back down the trail, noticing signs that reminded me this must be a popular snowshoe route. Also good for a future trip…

Back out at the trailhead, I continued through the parking lot (now full with hikers) and towards the Mount Hood Ski Bowl parking lot.

The resort rests on the sides of Tim, Dick, and Harry Mountain and was obviously finished for the season.

Leaving the parking lot of the ski bowl and walking through a few jersey barriers, I carefully crossed HWY 26 where it connects with East Government Camp Loop that runs through the town of Government Camp. My goal was to have lunch and then catch the shuttle that leaves from this intersection.

Mt. Hood Brewing Company was large and spacious with most folks opting to eat out on the patio.

I had a hearty salad full of fruit and veggies, finishing only half before it was time to catch the bus.

It was clear where the bus stopped on the same side as the brewery to take one towards the mountain but there wasn’t a sign on the other side for heading away from the mountain. Luckily, an employee from the hotel next to the brewery was walking out and stood on the corner opposite here giving me what I needed.

Once on the bus, my plan was to take it into Zigzag proper then walk back to the cabin for my bike (yes, walk across HWY 26 again).

The last stop for the bus before it turned around to head back up HWY 26 was near the Zigzag ranger station and I took this opportunity to check out the flyers and trail conditions. I am not sure why I didn’t think about looking here yesterday but again, information for a future trip.

I took an opportunity to sit for a bit in the cabin and add a few rows on an intarsia project (I am still working on this one as I write this). I may have also taken a nap!

My research had indicated that the original Oregon Trail “portal” started in Rhododendron which is just east of Zig Zag so I headed out on my bike behind the bbq joint again and connected with HWY 26, crossed over to Still Creek Road and followed a patchwork of pavement, gravel and footbridges to find it.

The kiosk generically mentions the Indigenous people who called this home before colonizers arrived, the land was stolen from the Upper Chinook with a treaty in 1855.

The Pioneer Bridle Trail is a popular mountain biking trail that continues to Government Camp and I decided to see how far I could get today. Most people start at Government Camp and head down but here I was going against the grain.

For some reason again, I didn’t take a lot of pictures. The trail was more pavement, gravel, a few campgrounds and a bit of single track as I navigated it traveling east.

When I reached the Camp Creek Campground I rode around the sites a little bit and down to the crossing of Still Creek before turning around (about 5.5 miles in). The kiddo was already back at the cabin and I wanted to join him.

Since I had climbed about 800 feet in elevation, I thought that a ride down on the road would be thrilling (and faster). So I left the campground and rode out to HWY 26 and turned right.

Again no pictures (or video) but you imagine the fun (it had taken 75 minutes to get up where I was and 15 minutes to get back down)! Here was the bus stop in front of the closed grocery store in Rhododendron, very obvious.

We spent the evening relaxing in the cabin and although we had originally planned to fit in a few more activities the next morning, the kiddo decided he was ready to go home so we left as the sun was rising to avoid Portland traffic.

All-in-all a fun trip and I hope to do something similar in the future now that I have a more of an idea of what is possible in this area. It was nice to be up in the shoulder season, maybe a fall trip would be something to try when the trails in the higher elevation are thawed out and clear of winter’s abuse.