Hiking Wind Mountain

Welcome to your new favorite short hike in the Columbia Gorge. This is the hike you were always looking for but you could never find. 

You know those weekends when you can’t commit to a weekend away to go backpacking or even dedicate a whole day to a long day hike but you still wanna get outside, get your heart racing and see some amazing views? Well, if that sounds like you then Wind Mountain is a perfect hike to try out.

Most people don’t know of Wind Mountain so you get to avoid the heavy crowds that tend to swarm the Columbia Gorge on weekends. Wind Mountain is a smaller (much smaller) version of Dog Mountain and is located conveniently right next to the notorious Dog Mountain.

How to get there:

The trailhead is a little tricky to find but, for reference, it is very close to the Dog Mountain trailhead. After you cross over to Washington on the Bridge of the Gods, turn left on Route 14 (also called Lewis and Clark Hwy) and then follow the road until you reach mile marker 51. At mile marker 51 turn left onto Wind Mountain Rd until you reach Girl Scout Rd. Take a right onto Girl Scout Rd which will eventually turn into a dirt road. There is a wide area to park before the road goes downhill or there is one parking spot at the trailhead. 

Once you park, head down the dirt road and you’ll see a wooden post. The wooden post, believe it or not, is the start of the trail. I included a picture of what the "trailhead" looks like for reference above.

One important note: there are two left turns on Route 14 for Wind Mountain Rd so make sure to look for milepost 51.

The hike: 

The hike itself is short with just over 1.25 miles to the summit. However, you are gaining 1,200 feet in elevation so expect your calves to be burning, your body to be sweating and your legs to be shaking by the time you’re at the top.

Most of the trail is in the forest. You’ll pass two different rock passages with prominent views of Dog Mountain. After one mile, the trail will become flat and you’ll see signs explaining the history of Wind Mountain. Once you’ve reached the flat trail, you will travel to the south end of the mountain where you will have two viewpoints. Make sure you see both.

The first viewpoint is a rocky outlook toward the right of the mountain. There you will look out to the Columbia Gorge, on a nice day you can sometimes see Mount Hood.

The second viewpoint (much larger and less steep than the first) is a rocky outlook toward the left of the mountain. This viewpoint has a great view of Dog Mountain and Mount Defiance.

Since both viewpoints consist of LOTS of rocks, small dogs are not recommended. It can be extremely windy at the top (ironic? maybe) so make sure to be extra careful, especially with kids.