Basic alpine
Steep snow to 35–40° (South Side route)
Glacier travel: crampons, ice axe, rope teams.
1 day
Fee / registration
Paid Mt. Hood Climbing Permit required above 9,500 ft since 2024 ($20/3-day or $50/annual via Recreation.gov), plus the free wilderness permit at the trailhead and a Sno-Park/parking pass in season.
Government Camp
Crowds: high
Spring (April–June) is the season — consolidated snow, frozen rockfall, long daylight. By mid-summer the route melts out into a dangerous bowling alley of loose rock.
Hood's South Side is many climbers' first 'real' mountaineering route: start at 2 a.m. from Timberline Lodge, climb steady snowfields past fumaroles that remind you it's a volcano, and finish up the 35–40° Old Chute to a knife-cut summit ridge. Conditions rule everything — the same slope is secure at dawn and a wet-slide hazard by 10 a.m. Self-arrest skill is mandatory, and many rope up for the chute.
A solitary Cascade giant — 2,200 m of snow climbing that teaches the whole craft in a weekend.
America's glacier school — the most heavily glaciated peak in the lower 48 and the classic Denali tune-up.
North America's third summit — a winter-season glacier climb with unbeatable acclimatisation value per dollar.