BaltimOregon to Maine

Timberline Lodge/Flickr Creative Commons/by Joe Leeteerakul

We took advantage of a recession deal and snuck away for the night to Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood. Weekday lift tickets there are now $20 off Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (thanks Willamette Week recession busters guide) Instead, we got two free tickets included with our room. The bored waitstaff eagerly leapt to attention when we entered a vacant dining room for lunch. It was poignant to stay at the stately Lodge, hastily constructed by WPA workers between 1936-38, amidst this current depression. You should recognize the eerie stone structure from the movie, The Shining.

It’s also unreal to have such good skiing conditions so nearby. It snowed most of Tuesday and we had the tranquil powdery slopes to ourselves. Nestled in the national forest, Timberline is small and thankfully lacks the touristy development of Colorado and Utah, though I found the skiing about as good. Taking the Magic Mountain lift up to the open bowl above the treeline was turly sublime. The snow-capped mountain and grey-white sky merged as one, as we skied down the edge of the world. In the summer, you can take the Palmer lift up to the top of Mount Hood, for glacier skiing. But that’s all snowed in now. A building near the start of that lift was completely buried in snow.

Well, I got my day of skiing in at least, which is more than I’ve done in several years. Of course I forget my camera, though:(

Mt. Hood-Timberline/Flickr Creative Commons/Joe Leeteerakul