Long before Timberline Lodge opened, the well-heeled adventurers of Portland wanted to go up to Mt. Hood and enjoy the view and play in the snow. So they built a stage road with Chinese laborers and a lodge called the Cloud Cap Inn. If you have never heard of it, or had the bone jarring experience of driving that old road, then this cache is for you. The old lodge is a beautiful log cabin at 6000 feet on the north side of Mt. Hood and the views are just awesome. You can hike up to Eliot glacier and play in the snow, camp in one of the two campgrounds or hike part of the Timberline Trail that encircles Mt. Hood. In the winter, you will need a snowmobile or plan a long cross-country ski adventure. The Crag Rats are the Hood River mountaineering group who take care of the lodge and plan outings to the top so you could maybe join them for a trip as well.
To learn more about the inn and it’s history, check out this site.
To learn more of the area’s history check out these links too:
http://pdxhistory.com.tripod.com/mthood/battleaxe/cloudcap/cloudcap.html
http://www.cooperspur.org/history.htm
Before winter snows close the road, you can drive right to the historic inn on the old stage road that includes about 12 switchbacks, a lot of dust and some rocks and washboards. Two-wheel drive is all you need but make sure you have real good tires and decent ground clearance. Just take Hwy 35 to the Cooper Spur turnoff, follow the road up toward the Cooper Spur Ski area. In about another 1.5 miles past the road to Cooper Spur Ski Area, you’ll come to another junction. Go right at the junction and continue on Cloud Cap road for about 9 miles of gravel fun. Near the end go right at the “T” shaped intersection and head up to the historic Cloud Cap Inn. Don’t forget you’ll need a Northwest Forest Pass to park. They’re $5 for a day/$30 for a year.
The coordinates above are for the viewpoint – not the cache!The cache is actually about 35 feet away at a bearing of 20 degrees NE of true north. It is a regular ammo can with some very nice prizes including an Oregon Geocoin for the first finder.
If you have time for a longer hike while at the top, be sure to check out this cache too: Cooper Spur by Sparkle Horse