Cooper Spur
Cloud Cap to the Cooper Spur hiking endpoint
The Route
The Cloud Cap hike climbs past the stone Cooper Spur shelter to the open volcanic ridge above the Eliot Glacier.
- Cloud CapThe Timberline Trail begins the ascent.
- Tilly Jane CanyonForest and volcanic ash give way to open slopes.
- Cooper Spur ShelterThe stone shelter is beside the climbing trail.
- Ridge SwitchbacksThe trail ascends the bare shoulder above the shelter.
- Cooper SpurThe hiking endpoint is below Mount Hood's summit climbing route.
Cloud Cap to Tilly Jane Canyon
The hike begins through the Cloud Cap picnic and campground area, joining the Timberline Trail. A separate branch leads toward the South Eliot Glacier Moraine; the Cooper Spur hiking approach continues toward Gnarl Ridge through mountain-hemlock forest and soft volcanic ash.
Shelter Junction
Switchbacks rise through Tilly Jane Canyon among boulders and open vegetation. Near the Tilly Jane Trail junction, the itinerary turns uphill onto Cooper Spur. The historic stone shelter is just off this trail, rather than the final hiking destination.
Bare Volcanic Shoulder
Above the shelter, forest gives way to the open spur. Broad switchbacks climb its increasingly steep shoulder, with the Eliot Glacier and Hood's north face on one side and views toward the Newton Clark Glacier near the crest.
Hiking Endpoint & Return
The guide's stated high point is 8,510 ft. Higher ridge explorations and the Cooper Spur summit climb extend beyond this itinerary. The published hike returns to Cloud Cap by the approach rather than crossing to Timberline Lodge.
Published reference figures for the named itinerary. Source dates and access notices are separate from current terrain observations. Reference Set: 2026-10-23.
Weather
Current forecasts open at the providers below. NWS forecasts describe a terrain grid cell, not an exact summit.
Access
Cloud Cap, Oregon · Mount Hood
Pass
An annual Northwest Forest Pass is accepted by the Forest Service as fee payment.
Source information checked 2026-10-23. Road snapshots are dated separately.
Reports
Cooper Spur Hiking Reference & Reports
The Cloud Cap hiking itinerary ends at the published 8,510-ft high point. The guide links separately to dated hiking reports.
Cloud Cap Access & Facilities
Land-manager trailhead information and forest access notices.
Links open the publishers’ report pages. Reports are not automatically imported or filtered to a forecast date.