Location summary:

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• City: Hood River, Oregon

• Skill level: Intermediate

• Wind: West, Southwest

• Access: The entire week, Monday through Sunday, except during hunting season

• Landing area qualify: Perfect, directly behind the hill, with smooth grass and plenty of opportunity to go-around a second time.

• Hazards in the area: Trees, barbed-wire fences, occasion rocks in the landing soil

 

Directions to the site:

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• Follow I-84 to Hood River. Take exit 64 and go south on Hwy 35.

• Go through the 4-way stop (approximately .3 miles from the interstate) and continue up and turn left just before the overhead bridge onto Whiskey Creek Road.

• At the top of Whiskey Creek road take a left on Eastside road. Go a few hundred feet, turn right on Old Dalles Road. This eventually turns into a dirt road.

• Follow Old Dalles Road for 3.1 miles (2.2 miles on the dirt portion) to a place where the land opens up into meadows on both sides of the road. There is a gate on the left and right side of the road right where it starts to open up and dirt hiking/biking trail going up through the meadow on the right side. Park along the road here.

• Walk up the hiking/biking trail (now a closed gravel road for the planned cell tower site). This takes you up the back side of the flying site. When you get to the top of the ridge, walk to the left (south) down the ridge until you get to a open area on the face of the slope. There is a fence running along the ridge above the flying site that you will need to cross over at some point. From here you can look west out over Hood River and see the Hood River airport. This is the flying site. The total walk is less than 3/4 mile.

• View the map. 

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Site review:

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Private timber land that we have permission to fly on. PASS members and the local Hood River Club use it regularly.  No fires or smoking please! Watch the PASS web site for fire season closures!  If the fire closure signs are posted, please do not go up to the site.  The forest land is patrolled during fire closures and trespassing citations are given out by the local sheriff.  No access during hunting season.

 

This site has a very similar look and feel as Bald Butte (a few miles to the south).  We have slope races, slope combat, and aerobatic events here.  Great lift, there are usually some full-size sailplanes flying much higher on the ridge.  The site is best flown with a good west wind.  When there is a NW wind, the bowl to the right can suck your airplane in and then you get to walk downhill to retrieve it!

 

Description provided courtesy of Pat Chewning and Bruce Alber.
 

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