Mt Hood from Sherrard Point (Jeff Statt)

Mount Saint Helens and fog over the Columbia River from Sherrard Point (Steve Hart)

One of the plaques on the summit. (Jeff Statt)

• Hikes to this location:
  • Sherrard Point Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)
  • Larch Mountain Crater Loop Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)
  • Larch Mountain Crater Rim Loop Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)
  • Franklin Ridge from Larch Mountain Loop Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)
  • Larch Mountain Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)
  • Larch Mountain via Oneonta Trail Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)

• Weather forecast: NWS/NOAA
• Maps: Oregon Hikers Maps Google Maps
• Latitude, Longitude: 45.53271, -122.0878
• Elevation: 4055 feet

Description

Sherrard Point is the exposed volcanic conduit on the top of Larch Mountain. Once the site of a tall fire lookout tower (which the volcanic plug was flattened to accommodate), the pinnacle now hosts a fenced observation platform with views of five major volcanic peaks (Rainier, Adams, St. Helens, Hood and Jefferson) as well as the Columbia River and scores of lesser summits. It's reachable via a 0.3 mile long paved path (with stairs) or as the climax of a 7.2 mile trek up from the Columbia River at Multnomah Falls.

Larch Mountain is a shield volcano and the most prominent member of the Boring Lava Field. The volcano last erupted about 1.4 million years ago, and the peak was heavily glaciated during the last Ice Age. A nice feature of the viewpoint are concrete slabs marking distances to the volcanic peaks (the Mount Saint Helens panel gives the pre-eruption height).

The road to the upper trailhead is closed (by gate) during the winter months.

More Links

• Larch Mountain (Summit Post)
• Larch Mountain (Multnomah County, Oregon) (Wikipedia)
• "Larch Mountains, Washington and Oregon" (The Columbia River: A Photographic Journey)
• The Greatest Viewpoint of them all – Sherrard Point (Brian's Brain Dump)
• Larch Mountain Lookout Site (Former Fire Lookouts)

Contributors

• stevefromdodge (creator)