[OR Native]

Went up to Mt. Hood this weekend. My husband, myself, 13 yr old daughter and her friend. Just went from Timberline Lodge over to Paradise Park, so about 6 miles each way. Started on Saturday with lots of clouds and it looked really dark a few times. The good thing is it kept most people away, so we only saw a couple other people on the trail. There is still some snow on the trail, but very easy going...even our daughters friend who had never backpacked before was fine. Snow still covered Zigzag Creek, so it was a really easy crossing. Saw a turkey on the trail, and then a doe and a buck near our camp. The wildflowers are just starting to come in and they are gorgeous! Founda great little spot to camp with a snowfield next to it. The girls made a butt skiing area and used the poles to guide the course, and we all had a blast! Lucked out with the weather...not a drop of rain, but it stayed cool which felt great. Heading out yesterday though it was warm and sunny...so LOTS of people on the trail. Did come across a really annoying thing though...3 women who had no clue about what they were doing and tried to rely on us, without asking. On our way in on Saturday they kept right behind us and stopping at the same times. Finally we just did a mad dash to get rid of them. One was in tennis shoes and denim shorts, another is heavy cotton sweatpants, and the other in jeans. oh and a little yappy dog of some sort that kept begging for food from us. We thought we were rid of them. nope. Yesterday morning as we were packing up they showed up at our camp. i thought at first that they wanted our spot and were waiting for us to leave, but no, they asked us if we knew where the trail went?!!!!!! my dh wasn't all that nice and said "no". They had no map and no clue that the trail went around the mountain! so we left, and wouldnt you know it they kept following us, staying right on our heels. The girls nicknamed them "the stalkers" and the dog "cougar snack", lol! It got really irritating so once again we bolted and left them in the dust. We werent too worried...the trail is very easy to follow so there is no reason they couldnt find their way out. At least we were able to salvage our fun by escaping them. On our way back home we stopped in Gov't Camp at the Huckleberry Inn for cheeseburgers, fries and huckleberry shakes. Heaven!!!

[OR Native]

Forgot to add...my dh and I got a good laugh when our daughter was getting something out of her pack and we saw her hairbrush come out and mascara, lol! But hey, it made her happy and she was carrying it. But I guess that is the priority of a 13 year old girl:)