Mount Hood

Hood is a stratovolcano reaching 3,429 metres with eleven glaciers, and it is considered likely to erupt again - the last significant activity was in the 1790s. Timberline Lodge at 1,800 metres was built between 1936 and 1938 by Works Progress Administration crews, largely by hand: local timber, wrought iron from old railway track, hand-hooked rugs and carvings by unemployed craftsmen, and it remains a working hotel and a National Historic Landmark. It was used as the exterior of the Overlook Hotel in The Shining. The Palmer Snowfield above it holds enough snow for lift-served skiing through the summer, which makes Timberline the only ski area in the country open every month, used heavily by racing camps.

What you actually see

• A 3,429-metre volcano - with eleven glaciers, still considered active.
• Timberline Lodge - built by hand by WPA crews, 1936 to 1938.
• Year-round lift-served skiing - on the Palmer Snowfield.
• The Shining exterior - filmed at the lodge.

When to go

June to September for hiking; skiing runs every month. A full day.

Honest expectations

Summit climbs are mountaineering, not hiking, and the mountain has a high fatality record. Summer skiing is a small area on soft snow. Parking passes are required at many trailheads. Cloud hides the peak often.

Nearby

The Columbia River Gorge is north; Bend is south-east.