Hidden Oasis

This is Umbrella Falls on Mt. Hood in Oregon. I discovered them kind of by accident by just looking for waterfalls that provide good photo opportunities on the Northwest Waterfall Survey website. When I saw that it was a short hike and very near the Mt. Hood Meadows ski area, a place on the mountain I knew well I scheduled a late fall trip hoping to get the falls with a fresh blanket of snow. Well, I waited too long and on the morning I headed up instead of a nice blanket of snow I got a raging blizzard! I couldn't even find the trail, much less hike back to the falls. So undeterred, I came back the next fall a little earlier in the season. There was no blanket of snow but there were some sweet fall colors just starting to show! And best of all no raging blizzard!