More Larches in Oregon! Eightmile Loop to Fivemile Butte Fire Lookout

Every fall, I miss my old homes in Pennsylvania and Michigan. The PNW is superior in almost every way, but can never compete when it comes to fall colors. That is, until I discovered the Western Larch! You can read more about this special tree in my last post about the Metolius Preserve. I traveled to Central Oregon in search of the larch... little did I know I had been hiking and skiing amongst the larches by Mount Hood for decades.

A beautiful, golden larch grove off the trail to Fivemile Butte

That's right, you don't have to travel up to the North Cascades or down to Bend to see the stunning yellow conifers. There are massive larch groves all over the east side of Mount Hood, if you know where to look. Eightmile Loop to Fivemile Butte Lookout is a true hidden gem: amazing payoff for a relatively easy hike, and no crowds!

Fast Facts - Eightmile Loop to Fivemile Butte Fire Lookout

AllTrails Link here: https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/oregon/eightmile-loop-trail-to-fivemile-butte-lookout

• SEASONAL ROAD CLOSURE - the forest roads are closed December 1 - April 1 every year. You will need a snowmobile to access the trails after this date.

• The forest roads to the Eightmile Campground are gravel, but in great condition. You can call the Barlow Ranger District Office for weather updates.

• 5-miles roundtrip

• 800-feet elevation gain

• Park at the Eightmile Campground

• NW Forest Pass or America the Beautiful Pass required (no pay station on site)

• Dogs allowed! Yay!!

• Best time for larches is early to mid November

The fire lookout is locked, but you can still climb up to the top of the stairs. You can reserve the lookout here: Recreation.gov.

The larch groves are incredible, but there's something about a solitary larch in front of the pines

Eightmile Trail to Fivemile Butte Lookout

There is a huge network of trails in this part of the Mount Hood National Forest - called the Barlow District. It's right on the border of Hood River and Wasco counties, and much less trafficked than the western side of the mountain.

You will start seeing golden larches off the side of US-35 when you get to the eastern side of Hood. Funny enough, as we drove past, I saw a few at the Teacup Nordic Sno Park. I love to xc ski, and had no idea I was skiing past larches every season!

You'll turn off US-35 onto NF-44, then onto NF-4430. Larches will be plentiful at this point! On the way back, we pulled over to take some photos, including one of a cloud inversion at the base of Hood.

A few larches even made it in to my photo of the cloud inversion!

If you are not a hiker, this would be a fantastic way to see larches from the comfort of your car. The roads are very well maintained and I think any vehicle would be perfectly fine to use (weather permitting of course).

We started our hike at the Eightmile Campground. It was about 2.5 miles of gently graded switchbacks to the top of Fivemile Butte. We encountered a few mountain bikers and a few hikers. We were shocked at how few people we saw - for a hike so beautiful, and so easy, with incredible payoff, this really should be more popular.

You can also drive to the top of Fivemile Butte, but where's the fun in that? All the larch groves are on the trail! At the top of the Butte, you'll find the fire lookout, a shed for firewood, a picnic area, and pit toilets.

The catwalk and cabin are locked, but you can climb up to the top of the stairs!

The fire lookout is 40-feet tall. You can only access the cabin and the catwalk if you have a reservation, but everyone else can still climb the stairs and get a good view! I am terrified of heights but it wasn't too bad.

Western Larch Groves

I love fire lookouts more than almost anything else, but the highlight of the hike was truly the larches. On November 8, they were at peak color. They ranged from a pale lemon yellow, to bright amber. It was absolutely incredible to see views of the Mount Hood Forest from the top of the Butte - it's a sea of evergreen trees polka-dotted with yellow larches. Hiking through the larch groves was also incredible - I couldn't believe how many there were.

Jorge and Stitch hiking through a larch grove.

Overall, this was in my top 10 hikes of all time. As an avid hiker for over 10 years now, this is a huge claim to make! The gently graded and well-maintained trail, the stunning larches, the views of Hood, the fire lookout, and the lack of crowds all made this an 11/10 experience for me. I can't wait to come back next fall!

This was my favorite photo I took - hoping Bon Iver will consider it for his next album cover

One more thing... on the way back to Portland, my husband and I stopped at a new (to us) restaurant in Welches called Naan N Curry, and it's our new favorite. We got a hot chai tea (great for after a chilly hike!), Navratan Korma, Mango Tikka Masala, and garlic naan. It was the perfect post-hike meal, and the atmosphere in the restaurant was so cozy and comfortable. It will be our new go-to apres-ski meal!

Overlooking the larches polka-dotting the sea of evergreens