Timothy Lake

Timothy Lake Hike

Distance: 14 miles
Elevation Gain: 200
Location: Mt Hood National Forest
Attendance: Boy Scout Hike - Darrin, Vicki, Connor, Dale, Josh A, Ethan V, Doug, Michelle, Dallas, Me, Sage, Mitch T, & Alex T.

The gang before we really get going.

So the original plan was to start our hike at Little Crater Lake and hike down to Timothy Lake and then around the lake and back. Well, I was enjoying a nice conversation with my passengers and completely missed the turn off. Lol. After completing this hike, I would recommend starting at Little Crater lake. But either place is really fine. The gem of this hike is Little Crater Lake, either way. I would recommend it for a nice quiet place to camp as well.

Map of our hike. Starting at the damn.

So we started our hike at the trail head at the dam. Going to the east side of the lake we went through many camp grounds, and were unsure where the trail was at times. This was probably the most frustrating part of the hike. I'm not a fan of a lot of crowds on the trail, and there were people every where, as it was a mid summer day. Not my favorite part of the hike. But the view was nice.

View of Mt Hood

The PCT

After we got through the crowds, everything was beautiful. Lots of Bear grass. Bugs werent really too bad. We connected with the PCT and hiked that path for awhile until we came to the Little Crater Lake shoot off. Darrin had recommended we see this site, and said it was absolutely stunning. He was right. Gorgeous scenery with wildflowers and the lake is amazing! A must read about how it was made. I'm not going to spoil it for you.

Bear Grass

A little spring coming up from underground

The path to Little Crater lake

Little Crater Lake

Little Crater Lake

Meadow between Little Crater Lake and the Campground

The way back from Little Crater lake I asked the boys to step up there speed a little bit. as I wanted to get there speed up to prepare them for their 20 mile hike. I was impressed they went from a speed of 1.8 at the beginning of this hiking season, to a 2.3 the first half of todays hike. After I asked them to step it up a bit, they booked it to a 4mph speed for an hour. I was impressed. Now I know they can do it. :o) Next we can take it a bit harder on the trail...

At the base of the dam

Overall, i will say I was skeptical about this hike. Not my usual choice for hikes, but I was impressed. It was nice. Especially the shoot off to Little Crater Lake.