GOVERNMENT CAMP, Ore. — Cross-country skiing normally is the sweet route to solitude, a way to experience serenity and snow-flocked scenery.
But not at Trillium Lake on Mount Hood.
The 4.75-mile loop around the lake is ranked No. 1 in Oregon and No. 7 nationally among cross-country ski outings by www.trails.com, but even before those lofty
ratings the place was packed.
So don’t expect solitude at Trillium Lake. It’s a place where there’s safety in number, easy terrain and comfortables distances.
Expect lots of people and a near-full parking lot. It’s best skiied mid-week or early in the day.
The reward is an easy loop after a steep descent from the sno-park. There’s a fine view of Mount Hood from Trillium Lake Dam.
But as this El Nino winter morphs into spring, skiers will want to visit Trillium Lake sooner, not later. At 3,600 to 3,800 feet in elevation, the loop is down to about 18 inches of snow.
Trillium Lake Sno-park is on Highway 26, 1.8 miles north of Summit ski area,
Starting at the sno-park, descend down the road for a half mile to Airstrip Junction at 3,655 feet elevation and east of a former land strip. The half mile drops 175 feet in elevation and often gets walked unless snow conditions are slow.
At the junction, head left climbing and dropping slightly before reaching the entrance to Trillium Lake campground at 1.35 miles.
Trillium Lake dam is reached at 2.04 miles. It’s the logical spot to spot for a break, as Mount Hood dominates the view with the snow-covered lake in the foreground.
There are two picnic tables here.
The loop continues to a junction with Sherar Burn road at 3.22 miles. Take the right fork (clockwise), passing private cabins and dropping to Summit Meadows at 3.74 miles.
It’s an almost flat another half mile to the completion of the loop at 4.26 miles, then a half-mile back up the road to the parking lot.
Mark Cooper of Seattle said he rates the Trillium Lake loop a seven on a scale of 1-to-10.
Cooper, his wife and young child, walked the hard-pack snow from the parking lot to the dam recently.
“It’s easy terrain,” Cooper said. “We’re doing it with an 11-month-old so it’s a new experience doing it with a child.”
A donations box has been placed at the start of the trail, where visitors leave Trillium Lake Sno-Park.
Weekend grooming is done by a volunteer with the donated dollars. The money goes solely for the rental of the groomin equipment, according to the Zig Zag Ranger District of the Mount Hood National Forest.
A sno-park permit is needed at Trillium Lake. Oregon offers the permits for $3 a day, $7 for three days or $20 a season. The permits are sold by vendors at various retail outlets.
A Washington sno-park permit is valid in Oregon.
Washington’s daily permit is $21 and the seasonal permit is $41.
