A Great Hike Near Portland - Dog Mountain Trail

One of the great things about living in the Portland area is the shear number of things to do outdoors.  Even in the rain you find people out biking, boating, walking, playing soccer, and just out enjoying nature.  As I have become more and more of an Oregonian, I find myself enjoying hiking in the nearby mountains.  One of the recent hikes was about an hour out of Portland on the Washington side of the Gorge.  On a sunny day with threatening clouds we took off to Dog Mountain.  To get there we simply headed east on the 84 to the Bridge of the Gods, and cut across to the Washington side and continued east on Hwy 14. About 12 miles up the road you come to mile marker 53 and you should see the trail head on your right.  You can head up either of two trails. Both are strenuous hikes, and round trip is about 7 miles.  Before you look for something easier like Multnomah Falls, you need to realize that this hike allows for incredible views of the Gorge, incredible forest, and plenty of plants waiting to have their pictures taken.  On the day we went up we started with sunshine and clouds.  As we climbed, we realized the clouds were starting to drop.  We continued on as the wind picked up and the temperatures dropped.  The following pictures are from our outing to Dog Mountain.  It is a must hike if you are in Oregon.  All of the views are looking back to the Oregon side of the Columbia River.  Enjoy the hike and let me know what you think.