46	BARRETT SPUR SUMMIT

ELEVATION: 7320 ft at Barrett Spur Viewpoint (Green Knoll); 7863 ft on Barrett Spur Summit; with vertical gains of 2820 ft, and 3365 ft

DISTANCE: Less than 4½ mi up directly to the viewpoint, 9 mi round-trip; Less than 5 mi up to the true summit, 9¾ mi round-trip loop with Dollar Lake near Elk Cove

DURATION: 3–4 hours up, 6–8 hours round-trip loop

DIFFICULTY: Mix of strenuous for Barrett Spur Viewpoint (long, steady steep, narrow at times, trail-finding, rocky, above tree line) and very challenging for Barrett Spur Summit (loose scree and rock, more difficult with lingering snow, steep summit block, narrow but solid, slightly exposed near big boulders on top)

TRIP REPORT: Portlanders can easily see the huge rocky moraine ridge and summit N of Mount Hood on a clear day. And from the viewpoint or Barrett Spur Summit you can see into Washington’s Cascades as well as the outrageous local panorama, including being directly between the (gigantic) Coe and Ladd Glaciers! The Vista Ridge TH provides the briefest route and loop option for this hike. No fee or restroom.

TRAILHEAD: Vista Ridge TH. See hike 45 for directions.

ROUTE: See hike 45 for the description to Wy’East Basin, taking a left (E) at the second three-way juncture from the top of Vista Ridge Trail 626 onto Timberline Trail 600 a hundred yards or so through the pretty meadows and sparse trees. Arrive at the faint juncture for Barrett Spur on the right (S) at one of two arms on Clear Branch Creek crossing the Timberline Trail within a few feet of each other (less than 3 mi from the TH).

Leave Trail 600 for Barrett Spur Trail 600D up ¼ mi S through the meadows (staying on Trail 600D at a nearby faint juncture); the route steepens only somewhat and will be more difficult to follow with snow coverage. Keep heading toward the moraine shoulder on the right (between Wy’East and Cairn Basins) that curves SE to meet the main (N) ridge (and return route for the loop) near Barrett Spur. You will follow the E side of the shoulder up a mile with trees shrinking to old gnarled snags along the wild setting as you see your goal for the remainder.

After hiking up snowfields and past more stunted whitebark pines, reach the main ridge (between Elk Cove and Wy’East Basin at about 7000 ft) near a cairn which marks the brief scenic return lollipop loop option down Dollar Lake Trail 600C near Elk Cove. Stay right (S) on Trail 600D instead another ¼ mi and 400 ft up to Barrett Spur Viewpoint (a wide, rocky, flatter saddle out of the wind zone) at the base of the stunning Ladd Glacier, with the Coe Glacier just below the summit of Mount Hood. Survey the area and return by the same route down the N ridge (or the slightly longer lollipop loop past Dollar Lake on Trail 600C; see below) to finish N down Vista Ridge.

Barrett Spur under Mount Hood from the last vegetation.

For Barrett Spur Summit from Barrett Spur Viewpoint, hike up the steep narrow ridge left (SE) of the saddle a long ¼ mi to a little fake summit. From the high ridge you see the boulder-topped summit 100 ft or so away. Work easier past bigger rocks and loose scree, and scramble the last bit briefly without difficulty. Be careful not to fall down onto either glacier or into the Coe Glacier’s many crevasses. Above you under Mount Hood is Pulpit Rock with Cooper Spur to the left (SE) and Yocum Ridge to the right (SW), as well as every other view you’ve had all day, only better; much, much better!

Return down Trail 600D carefully to the viewpoint saddle and then head down the main ridge to the juncture for the counterclockwise lollipop loop past Dollar Lake. You will enjoy the splendor from the open, wide ridge down a friendly grade N less than a mile to the cairned juncture for Trail 600C; then you will move a bit to the right (E) of the ridge following Trail 600C easily another ½ mi to Trail 600. The pines become larger again as you see the 6300-acre burn area from Elk Cove to Stranahan Ridge and much to the immediate N too. You cross a wash to the right (E) side of tiny Dollar Lake, which is the name of the famous fire that destroyed thousands of acres of forest in 2011 but ironically and thankfully left the lake area somehow completely unscathed!

Continue N on Trail 600C less than ¼ mi from Dollar Lake (slightly misplaced on USGS maps) to the Timberline Trail 600. Turn left (W), traversing Wy’East Basin ¾ mi across little streams surrounded by wildflowers (past Pinnacle Ridge Trail on the right and Barrett Spur Trail on the left) to the three-way juncture with Cairn Basin. Turn right down Vista Ridge Trail 2¾ mi N to the TH.