Winter Camping In The Pacific Northwest - Snowfall & Mount Hood Views | Conquest Overland

For this trip, I'm heading to Mount Hood, Oregon, joining up with a longtime friend, Ian. We've known each other throughout the years, though this will be our first opportunity of actually getting a trip on the books. Working at Mule Expedition Outfitters, Ian's Toyota Tundra has all the bells and whistles of what this shop is capable of doing, and as a longtime customer, their work speaks for itself. With that said, we're putting the Toyota versus Jeep, 35-inch tires versus 31s debate aside, and simply getting out to experience the larger picture of why we do this to begin with. I'll give you a hint, it largely doesn't have to do with the vehicles. So I invite you to join along as we embrace some winter camping and take on the snowy views of the Pacific Northwest. After a fun morning of exploring the trails around Mount Hood, we finally decided on a With getting all our things set up ahead of the cold night, the snow continued coming down offering breathtaking views of the scenery. This trip would make for the first snow camping experience in the new setup, and needless to say, I was more than thrilled to be here testing everything out. Well, good morning, everybody. Ian and I, we're waking up to stunning views of Mount Hood here on a blue sky, sunny day, yet very cold. Last night it got down to about 27 degrees, and I'm super thankful to actually have, for the first time, tried out this 2000 watt hour Blue Eddy power station. This thing is massive. It's a total overkill for just quick weekend use, but the reason why I brought it is I have a heated blanket up in the tent, so I ran an extension cable from the inside of the car all the way up to the tent and and with the heated blanket basically on medium and high all night long, it only consumed about 25% of the battery, so that's actually super impressive for at least having a capacity of this size, so if we're going to be doing multiple nights, it's actually nice to have a little bit reserved while charging everything else, so nice to have that. Eats a lot of space. It's not light by any means, but for a night of getting down to 27 degrees, I was thankfully warm. I can't say the exact same for Ian. I think even with a double sleeping bag system going on in his swag, he got a little chilly, so we have coffee going this morning to warm us up before we start packing down and heading out to Venture to see where else this area has to offer, but for me, I haven't really gotten to the Oregon area and especially finding camp around Mount Hood, so I'm super excited to be out here having the weather that we are and just really enjoying being in great company and great view, so here's to the start of the day and where the rest of our trip is going to take us. So Ian, how'd you sleep last night? It could have been better. I could have been bougie and I could have brought a heated blanket and stayed warm in the 26 degree weather, but I didn't. I just had two sleeping bags. Not gonna lie, when it comes to snow camping, it was nice to be a little bougie. Don't tell Ian, but at one point, I even got a little warm in the tent, but that'll be our secret. With breakfast out of the way, we were soon packing down camp to explore the area more. Unfortunately, the fall and winter seasons here in the Pacific Northwest means most of the light is gone before 5 p.m., mountain, our goal for today was to check out a unique nearby attraction. Constructed in 1937, Timberline Lodge stands on the south slope of Mount Hood at an elevation of 6,000 feet. This beautiful 55,000 square foot structure rises out of a pristine alpine landscape and is still being used for its original intent, a magnificent ski lodge and mountain retreat for everyone to enjoy. Legendary and awe-inspiring, it's a tribute to the rugged spirit of the Pacific Northwest. Declared a National Historic Landmark in 1977, Timberline Lodge is one of Oregon's most popular tourist attractions, drawing nearly 2 million visitors every year. The 1980 cult classic film The Shining, based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, used aerial shots of the Timberline as part of its opening scene. Film of the exterior of Timberline Lodge was used for some establishing shots of the fictional Overlook Hotel throughout the movie. Needless to say, this was a fun spot for the day and certainly a place I'd like to come back to, especially for bringing my skis. So I'm glad we made the trek to Timberline Lodge. That was actually really cool to see. I don't remember ever being here in the past. I know I've done skiing at the Mount Hood Meadows area, so it's kind of cool to come up here and see operations getting prepped and ready for the winter season ahead with all the avid skiers and riders and all that good stuff. So I'm definitely in that group so I'm more than looking forward to it. But it was cool to see that and kind of check out some of the history and whatnot. So for this evening, we're going to be heading towards Hood River and finding a little bit of a warmer spot for both of us, actually. I think Ian was a little colder than I was last night, so to help him out a little bit, we're going to go closer to that area and find a spot for tonight. Hopefully the weather holds off. We've got a lot of clouds rolling in, but we'll see. Either way, it's a great time. Awesome opportunity to test some products in this colder temperature and snow environment. But gotta love it. Wouldn't have it any other way. So I believe it is right through here. This isn't too bad. Let's hop out and look. For this trip, we certainly hit the jackpot on camping opportunities. This spot not only would be beneficial for those without a heating blanket, but also provided incredible views of both Mount Hood and Mount Adams. For me, that is a win all around, being able to experience winter camping, our time felt like it flew by. Having known Ian for a number of years, this was our very first camping trip together, and needless to say, it was long overdue. What made this time so memorable was the experience of simply getting outdoors, exploring new areas, embracing the elements, catching up over great meals, and witnessing new opportunities. Let this prove that no matter what you drive, gear you own, or the amount of time you have, all that matters is getting out. As always, I sincerely appreciate your support, and until next time, safe travels.