Very few balsalmroots in bloom today, but plenty of tiny wildflowers are opening up.

 A group of us decided to try Dog Mountain on a weekday to avoid crowds. When we arrived at 10:30 am on a Tuesday, there were only two other cars in the parking lot and we had the trail entirely to ourselves until we were nearly to the top. 

There is no snow on the trail on either the "Difficult" or "More Difficult" sections any more, but there are parts that are pretty muddy. We put traction devices on for the descent after it starting raining more substantially and we slipped a few times. The weather was really on and off on the ascent, with beautiful clear skies at the first viewpoint, and then sideways sleet at Puppy Point. We turned around shortly after Puppy Point when the sleet increased in intensity - sharp, sideways, fast sleet is not fun on the face. I can't speak to any snow on the trail past that, but it didn't look like there was any from where we turned around. There were just a couple of very small patches a ways off trail towards the top.

Wildflowers are JUST beginning to bloom! Depending on the weather going forward, I think a week or two from now will be perfect for flower viewing. We saw orchids, violets, balsamroot, and a few more just starting to appear. 

There are several viewpoints with stunning views if it's clear, but still lots of beautiful, lush forest hiking. It has a good variety of things to see and enjoy. It is a steep hike no matter how you approach it, but I think it's definitely worth it.

There are two vault toilets just a short walk up the trail from the parking lot, and both were open. 

Steeper way was pretty clear, shallower way had a 20' long snow patch (no spikes needed). Dog came home with like 10 ticks on her, so make sure to wear long pants tucked into socks, long sleeves and other covers. Our dog is up to date on her prophylaxis and we gave her a tick bath at home, so hopefully we're in the clear.

We planned our visit to the Gorge before the crazy April snow event that hit the region. While we didn't find the famous expanses of balsamroot we had imagined, we did find a rewarding, challenging hike to wide Columbia and Cascade views.

Parking/People/Potty:
Obtained the "couple days before" permit and it seemed like they were mostly claimed, but both arriving and leaving it seemed like there was plenty of room in the parking lot. The two vault toilets just a short way up the trail were clean and in good order except that one was absent TP. The other was stocked though. Plenty of people on the trail but wouldn't say it was particularly crowded. At the trail split, we took the "more difficult" route and found we were the only ones headed uphill that way; passed just a few parties heading downhill there. Room for everyone present to spread out at the top.

Trail:
The trail was in good condition all the way up. A couple of step-over trees across the trail were also walk-aroundable depending on your preference. Snow melt in the higher parts of the mountain resulted in a few slightly muddy spots but still good tread the whole way along.

Snow:
Large snow patches could still be found above where the trees open up. For the most part these were off trail, but one partch did cross the trail just a couple switchbacks before the top. It was getting trampled and kicked around so I'm sure it'll be gone shortly. At the top, the lollipop route was covered completely in snow so that it was really only the one direction that you could go without tromping.

Fauna:
In the woods we were followed by a rattling raven for a few minutes. Ominous! Otherwise mostly small birds flitting.

Flora:
The big stretches of wildflowers were not there (yet?). However, we did get to enjoy little, secret signs of spring in the small shady corners of the forested portion of the trail. Small, isolated, delicate wildflowers presented themselves here and there. Tree foliage was still coming in as well with young, folded leaves. I loved the woods in this hike, they had minimal ground shrubbery so you could really see far between the trees and experience the depth of the forest.

Views:
It's the Gorge, so views start from the road and follow you up. We appreciated looking across the river to the falls on the Oregon side even from the parking lot. Heading up, you see more and more. By Puppy Point, I almost started to feel like I was seeing the eastern horizon curve. First the nearby Gorge mountains, then farther south Cascades and finally Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Hood, and Silver Star all come into view. From the top we enjoyed the view west downriver and it was fun to sit with lunch and a map and pick out the peaks around.

Hiked Dog Mountain today with my 12 year old daughter and medium sized dog. The parking is right on the highway which is nice given all the breakins you hear about. There were maybe 8 cars when we arrived at 10:30. The trail is steep but in great condition. We went up the steeper route and down the slightly less steep. The less steep route was more exposed to the sun. Snow started covering the trail about a mile in and we needed spikes. We forgot our poles and those would have been nice to have. It was easy to follow the footsteps of prior hikers and the snow was shallow and somewhat packed. Views at the puppy lookout were awesome. Mt Hood was obscured but the gorge was incredible. And there was a nice dry rock to sit on for lunch. Deeper snow started about 1/4 mile before the lookout and got much deeper after the lookout. We were postholing regularly and our dog sunk into the snow over her head with just about every step (she loved it!). So we turned around maybe 0.2 miles from the summit. The descent was uneventful. Round trip was just under 4 hours including breaks. Would love to come back when the flowers are out.