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Dog Mountain Loop

based on 246 tracks & routes #4 hike out of 624 in
6.7 mi
Distance
2 hrs 49 min
Time
terrain
2,838 ft
Elev Gain

Overview

This is a difficult loop trail to Dog Mountain in Washington.

This trail goes by Puppy Dog viewpoint.

Fees and Regulations
Northwest Forest Pass (or America the Beautiful Pass) is required to park here
On weekends from March 31st to July 1st, a trail permit for each hiker ($1.50) is required in addition to the Northwest Forest Pass; order in advance at Recreation.gov. Only 165 permits are available per day for those using the parking area at Dog Mountain Trailhead. Permits can be purchased 6 months in advance.
Those taking the shuttle have the cost of the permit included in their ticket; shuttle users do not need to order in advance.
$2 toll each way at the Bridge of the Gods

Driving Directions
This hike is extremely popular and the parking area fills early. To avoid frustration, try to arrive before 8:00 a.m. or after 5:00 p.m. on weekends between March and October. As of Spring 2018, you will need to order a trail permit if you want to hike Dog Mountain on weekends from March 31st to July 1st.

Drive I-84 east to Exit 44 for Cascade Locks and Stevenson.

After exiting, go 0.4 miles, and turn right for the Bridge of the Gods Toll Bridge and Stevenson.

Drive 0.7 miles to pay the $2 toll, cross the Columbia River, and reach the junction with Highway 14.

Turn right here for Stevenson and Kennewick, and drive east on Highway 14 for 12.3 miles, passing through Stevenson and Home Valley, to pull into the large parking area for the Dog Mountain trail on your left (There are 70 spots in the newly laid out - 2016 - parking lot).



    Rate this Hike

    user_profile stars
    2 years, 4 months ago
    Did a double-dog today. Arrived at 8am and hiked up to the summit. Came back down, ate lunch at the picnic table and headed back up for a 2nd time. This hike is a great training hike.
    ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

    user_profile
    2 years, 8 months ago
    Quite a bit of snow for top mile. Recommend microspikes and poles due to about a foot of snow and some ice. Beautiful views with the snow. Very windy in places.
    ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

    user_profile
    5 years, 7 months ago
    The day we went had low level clouds covering the mountain top above about 1800 feet so no views. The date was April 17 which is about two weeks early for what will be the main Balsolm root bloom as buds were just showing. There were plenty of yellow bells, bleeding hearts and red currants among other varieties. The trail had lots of recent rain so was slippery but manageable.
    ★ ★ ★ ★

    user_profile
    5 years, 11 months ago
    It’s a calf burner hike and the views are still spectacular even in November. A little muddy at top and some frost with winds. But still special place.
    ★ ★ ★ ★

    user_profile
    1 year, 5 months ago
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    1 year, 9 months ago
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    1 year, 10 months ago
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    2 years, 1 month ago
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    3 years, 5 months ago
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    3 years, 7 months ago
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    4 years, 4 months ago
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    5 years, 4 months ago


Public Tracks

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mhippke 5 years, 4 months ago
Dog Mountain
Large lot, but heard it fills fast weekends. I went Wednesday ~130pm. Lots of spots. Permit only required weekends short time of year. Pretty steady climb up. 2nice viewpoint stops 2nd one is almost nicer than top in my opinion I took the A... trail back down, which was 0.9mi longer but flatter. No flowers on up trail. Quite a few on way down. A... trail had a few rocky segments like small ones but you have to cross a Rick slide in several areas. Watch footing. Was glad to have poles for steepness up and terrain down. Really nice trail. Great views of the Columbia river
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Penstemon 8 years, 7 months ago
Dog Mountain, Skamania County, WA
An early spring hike on a sunny last day of March up Dog Mountain in Washington's Gifford Pinchot National Forest. Lots of early wildflowers were blooming, lots of broken-off fir and pine branches were scenting the air, and the muddy trails were drying out. And poison oak was showing tiny new leaves, bright and shiny.
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Zuehlsdorf 5 years, 7 months ago
Dog Mountain (3/30/19, 9:01:22AM)
Mid 40’s at Th and 70’s in PDX as a high with mid to low 30’s at summit felt like 60. Sunny with 5-10mph wind to start and 5mph at the summit and clear. Descended via Augspurger. No snow on ascent and snow down to 2K ft descending. JZ, AB
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Matt Reeder 1 year, 10 months ago
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cr.nlsn 4 years, 1 month ago
Dog
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Dog
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