Mount Hood (Wy’east)
Mount Hood is Oregon’s highest peak and one of its stratovolcanoes that lies in what is called the Cascade Volcanic Arc of North America, which stretches from Northern California to British Columbia. It is a potentially active volcano with a low risk of erupting.
To the Multnomah tribe, the mountain is called Wy’east. The name comes from a legend that the Great Spirit Sahale had two sons, Wy’east and Pahto, who both loved a beautiful maiden named Loowit. The two brothers battled over Loowit by burning villages, and the Great Spirit Sahale was so angered over this that he reprimanded Wy’east, Pahto, and Loowit. Afterwards Sahale felt remorseful and created the lovely Mount St. Helens for Loowit, Mount Hood for Wy’east, and Mount Adams for Pahto.
In another telling, the brothers loved La-wa-la-clough, and their battling caused volcanoes in the area to erupt, destroying the Bridge of the Gods and at the same time creating the Cascades Rapids of the Columbia River.
On October 18, 1805, Lewis and Clark discovered the mountain and wrote “The pinnacle of the round topped mountain, which we saw a short distance below the banks of the river, is South 43-degrees West of us and about 37 miles (60 km). It is at this time topped with snow. We called this the Falls Mountain, or Timm Mountain.”
Country: United States
Mountain Range: Cascade Range
Elevation: 11,249 feet / 3,429 meters
First Ascent: July 11, 1857, by Henry Pittock and party of W. Lymen Chittenden, Wilbur Cornell, and Rev. T.A. Wood.
Fun Fact: Mount Hood is the highest peak in Oregon.
Photos
Mount Hood, Oregon’s highest mountain, basks in the sun. Mount Hood is a year-round destination for many types of outdoor activity. | Eric Backman
