Fall Hike Up Tilly Jane Trail to Cooper Spur Stone Shelter

I had another free day on Tuesday, so I took my grandpa hiking on the Tilly Jane trail past the A-frame cabin up to the Cooper Spur stone shelter near the Timberline trail. It's a 3.7 mile one-way hike with almost 3,000' of elevation gain. That's darn impressive, as my grandpa is 83 years old. I hope I have his genes!

The Tilly Jane trail #643 starts near the Cooper Spur Ski Resort located on the Northeast side of Mount Hood approximately 23 miles South of Hood River, Oregon. It's about 2.5 miles to the Tilly Jane A-Frame cabin. From there Tilly Jane trail #600A heads higher up the North side of Mt Hood to the junction of Timberline trail #600 and Cooper Spur Trail #600B. The Cooper Spur Stone Shelter is located a short distance up the Cooper Spur trail.

Download route (one-way) as shown in map above in Keyhole Markup Language (KML) format or GPX format for use with GPS units and mapping programs. Disclaimer.

Originally I was hoping the road to Cloud Cap Inn would be open, so we could start higher up and maybe make it all the way to Cooper Spur at about 8,500' in elevation. Unfortunately that was not the case on Tuesday, so we hiked up the Tilly Jane trail instead. We arrived at the trailhead around 9 AM to mostly sunny skis and a temperature in the upper 40's. There were only two other vehicles in the parking lot. We set off hiking, making our way up the mountain.

   

I have only been on the trail when it has been covered in snow, so it was neat to see it completely snow free. We took a break outside the Tilly Jane A-Frame cabin to eat lunch before continuing on to the Cooper Spur stone shelter.

   

As we gained elevation we had nice views of the Cascades to the North. Mt Rainier and Mt Saint Helens were out, but Adams was covered by clouds.

   

As we left the shelter of the trees, the wind picked up a bit. We saw a few patches of snow as we hiked above 6,000' in elevation. We arrived at the Cooper Spur stone shelter and I was able to see the inside for the first time. Normally it is full of snow!

   

The clouds were starting to come in as we relaxed at the shelter, taking in the views of the North side of Mt Hood. I was amazed at how much more snow is on the North side compared to the South side where I was climbing just the day before. It looks like a whole different mountain from the North side.

   

   

Grandpa and I enjoyed a snack before heading back down the trail. The descent was very welcomed and we made great time on the way back. We had a great hike on another beautiful Fall day in Oregon.

   

Gear List

REI Lookout 40 Liter Backpack
HighGear ATF8 Altimeter
Komperdell Powerlock Trekking Poles
CamelBak Antidote 70 oz. w/Insulated Drinking Tube
Petzl TIKKA XP 2 Headlamp
Altice Venture Rx Glacier Glasses
Olympus Tough TG-1 Camera
Solomon 3D Fastpacker Mid GTX Boots
Head Digital Sport Liner Gloves
Columbia Sportswear Men's Peak 2 Peak Jacket
Triple Star Packable Down Hooded Jacket
Mountain Hardwear Transition Jacket
Columbia Men's Cool Creek Cargo Pants
Columbia Men's Fast Trek Fleece Hat
First Aid Kit
iPhone w/NeoTreksGPS
Suunto A-10 Compass