Table Mountain from Aldrich Butte Trailhead Hike
From Portland Hikers Field Guide
- Start point: Aldrich Butte Trailhead
- End point: Table Mountain
- Trail Log: Trail Log
- Hike Type: Out and back
- Distance: 8.0 miles round trip
- Elevation gain: 3350 feet
- Difficulty: Difficult
- Seasons: April-October
- Family Friendly: No
- Backpackable: No
- Crowded: Yes
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Hike Description
The traditional hike to Table Mountain begins at the Bonneville Trailhead. This newer hike uses abandoned logging and access roads to shorten the hike considerably.
From the Aldrich Butte Trailhead, hike up a road that currently serves as a power line maintenance road. There's a fork near the trailhead and you'll want the left side. This road climbs a bit to the left, then heads back to the east (right) and soon enters the trees. This is the abandoned Aldrich Butte Road, built to access a military defense position on Aldrich Butte during World War II. The old road starts out pretty steep (for a road), but then the grade eases.
After about a mile, you'll come to a somewhat complicated trail junction near Carpenter Lake. The first trail to the right is the Dick Thomas Trail, which provides an alternate route up from the road. Next, you'll see Carpenter Lake itself, which has degenerated into a boggy meadow since resident beavers left. Just passed this, the road makes a sharp hairpin to the left and another old road continues straight ahead. This is the Two Chiefs Trail which heads northeastward to intersect the Pacific Crest Trail before reaching Lower Greenleaf Falls. Stay on the Aldrich Butte Road a bit farther and you'll come to another, nearly identical switchback and another northbound abandoned road. This is your trail, cleverly labeled by us as the Aldrich-PCT Connector Trail. You'll know you have the right trail as it climbs northward.
Soon, there's a small saddle and the trail enters the Cedar Creek drainage. The PCT is hidden in the trees, just above you to the right, so don't be surprised if you hear people. The two trails parallel each other for a ways and they intersect about 1 mile from Carpenter Lake. You can take either path north from here as they intersect again about 150 yards farther north. From this second junction take the Crest Trail northward as it begins to climb the west side of Table Mountain.
A half mile later, you'll come to the Heartbreak Ridge Trail. This is a newly reopened second route to the summit of Table Mountain. The new route follows the old Eastway Trail for some distance up the mountain, then veers on to a new path up a steep talus slope. The Heartbreak Ridge Trail is quite rugged, so for this hike stay on the Crest Trail for another 4/10 of a mile to the West Table Mountain Trail. (The Heartbreak Ridge Trail is detailed as the Table Mountain Loop Hike). Turn right here and start working.
The Table Mountain Trail has one flat spot and it ain't here. The first tenth of a mile is one of the steepest official trails in the area. It's heavily timbered and can be pretty slick if it's muddy. Then the trail breaks out into a loose talus area. The large stones have been crudely fashioned into a switchback, but be careful of rolling rocks underfoot. The trail climbs the base of some pointed rock formations called the Windbreak Rocks. If you have the misfortune to climb Table Mountain on a "bad weather day", you'll understand the appropriateness of the name. There are several different routes here and the trail is a bit of a maze. The trail reaches a Table Mountain Lower Viewpoint large flat area about a half mile above the Crest Trail. On a clear day, there are great views of Bonneville Dam and Cascade Locks and this makes a great picnic stop.
Continuing on, the trail alternates between small timbered patches and open hillsides. The open areas are mostly right on the edge of a cliff and have great views to the west. Eventually there are a couple of switchbacks through a talus area and some interesting pits that may have Native American origins. The trail passes another rocky area with a cairn marker. Soon after this the trail comes to a fork. Go straight ahead to the open North Viewpoint, where there are views of Mount Saint Helens, Mount Adams and Mount Rainier.
After you've had your fill of the north views, return to the fork and head south. Finally comes that flat stretch we mentioned earlier. Table Mountain is well named and the summit is flat as a table. The main trail heads south and several use paths crisscross the thinly forested summit. After a bit the trail starts dropping through stunning open meadows. Near the end of the trail, there are a couple of sketchy viewpoints. The south edge features incredible views of the cliffs framing the landslide, as well as views of the entire Columbia River Gorge and Mount Hood. Be careful here, as a stumble would mean sure death. Take your time exploring the summit and then head back the way you came.
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