Gold Hill to Tidbits Mountain

10/26/24

This secluded trail requires a relatively long drive through logging roads to access. Spoiler... it is totally worth the effort. This has one of the most beautiful summits with a 360 view of the Oregon cascades. Even after living in Oregon my whole life, this was my first time on this hike.

Keep in mind that this hike is quite a long way from the highway so I would suggest bringing a buddy with you (for me it was my brother). The trail is not very well maintained and it feels like an old hidden path. According to All Trails, this hike is 8.6 miles. According to my watch, however this hike was nearly 13 miles.

Summit of Tidbit Mountain

Overall, this hike was intermediate although the last little bit of the hike was pretty intense but short lived. Once the trail ends there is an option to climb up to the summit. There was an old latter, but it looked very sketchy, so my brother and I opted to climb up the rocks. It was not difficult at all and I would barely qualify it as a "climb". When you get to the top of the "climb" you are literally at the tippity top of the mountain. it is about a 5ft by 5ft chunk of rock with a 360 view of the cascades. We went on a slightly cloudy day in the fall, but on a clear day (not during fire season) you should be able to see most of the mountains in the cascades.

Scree above tree-line

The last mile or so of the hike is above the tree line and there is a significant amount of scree that is sketchy in some areas. It isn't super intense but does require some extra caution. We did not bring trekking polls, but they may be helpful for extra support during this section of the hike. This hike would be very dangerous if it was dark so make sure to plan accordingly. Although no technical skills are required, there are multiple areas that might elevate your heart rate a little bit. This is the mail reason I suggest bringing someone with you. There are a lot of places on the trail that it would be easy to lose your balance or twist your ankle.