Dog Mountain Trail Permits Will Go on Sale March 15

Given the fact that more than half of the city is currently blanketed in snow, wildflower season seems months away, not mere weeks.

But today’s announcement by the U.S. Forest Service that Dog Mountain permits are about to go live, it’s a sure sign that spring is near.

The agency will release hiking passes online starting March 15. Those are needed for anyone planning to head up the nearly 3,000-foot-tall peak just outside of Stevenson, Wash., in the Columbia River Gorge on weekends from April 29 through June 19. Permits are also required on two holidays that fall during that period: Memorial Day (May 29) and Juneteenth (June 19).

New this year: Permits will be issued for each vehicle rather than for each person. Hikers must provide either digital or hard copy evidence of those passes on the Dog Mountain Trail system and while parked at the trailhead parking lot every Saturday and Sunday.

The U.S. Forest Service is releasing slightly fewer permits this year compared to what it planned to issue in 2020 pre-pandemic—90 per day through the online reservation system versus 100 per day. Of those, 50 permits for each day will be available starting March 1 and recreationalists can access the additional 40 online three days before each permit date.

Grumbling about the rise of the permitting system in forestland across Oregon has popped up in online outdoors and recreational forums. But the Dog Mountain passes are pretty inexpensive in the grand scheme of things. Online vehicle permits cost $2, and there is an additional day-use fee of $5, though annual passes like the Northwest Forest Pass and Every Kid Outdoors cover the latter cost.

Just keep in mind that reserving a permit does not guarantee a parking spot will be available by the time you arrive. The skinny strip of land off State Route 14 tends to fill quickly, and leaving cars on the shoulder is not allowed, so your best bet is the free shuttle, which runs about every 30 minutes from the Skamania County Fairgrounds in Stevenson from 7:30 am to 5 pm. Seats are first-come, first-served.

The permit process started in 2018 after the crush of spring wildflower viewers created congestion and at least one deadly accident.