Dog Mountain: What'a B*tch

Dog Mountain - yep, she's a bitch! Well, not quite, but the first clue the trail is going to be a little tougher than your average hike is the trailer marker which offers hikers the choice of going left or right at the first fork labeling it "more difficult" or "less difficult" !! Haha. AWESOME. Bring it on!!!

Dog is on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge, and is definitely a leg and lung buster. The trail is about 7.2 miles round trip, and climbs to about 3,000 feet. The first half mile you gain over 700 feet in elevation, so the trail doesn't waste any time in getting hikers' heart rates also climbing ;)

The "harder" trail option takes hikers through the forest directly up the mountain - quite literally a straight shot. But, the "less" difficult trail option winds around the side with a few switch backs the offer hikers sweeping views of the Columbia River Gorge! Absolutely gorgeous. Although we hiked in the trail in July - in May, there are beautiful wildflowers in full bloom that line the sides of the trail, which is sight to behold, or so I'm told!

Anyway, the top of the trail you can see Mt. Defiance - which is the tallest peak in the gorge at 5,000 feet, and touted as Oregon's toughest hike - due to it's rocky and step terrain. Also, you can see the tip of Mt. Hood on a clear day :) Also, apparently you can see Mt. St. Helens from the summit, but due to the cloudy conditions we were unable to see her. Oh well, we saw St. Helens up close and personal just a few months after this hike :) The winds were so strong, and it looked like a storm was brewing, so we didn't spend much time at the top - just enough for a quick breather and photo opp!

All-in-all, Dog Mountain was a great conditioning hike, and offers trail goers some amazingly beautiful views of the gorge. Parking can be a bit tricky, so if you hike this trail during a popular time, be sure to arrive early. Also, there are warnings of poison oak and rattlesnakes along the trail! Yikes! Luckily we didn't come across either of them! Although we did see a wild turkey!!

Another absolutely gorgeous hike in the gorge!