Trillium Lake is a beautiful lake located in the Oregon Mount Hood National Forest. The lake is about an hour away from Portland. At the shore of the lake, it offers gorgeous view of Trillium Lake itself, the forest, and most importantly Mount Hood itself. It has been a popular weekend getaway for the Oregonians during the summer.
To get to Trillium Lake from Portland, you can take HWY 26 and go East towards Mount Hood. You will first pass the town of Boring (which is really boring) until you enter Mount Hood National Forest. The road to Trillium Lake will be on your right hand side. Once you get to Trillium Lake, there are 2 parking lots where you can park your car. There are usually more parking spaces on the west parking lot. If you get there early in the morning, it won't be difficult to find a parking space. Like most of the other hiking trails in Oregon, you have to pay 5 dollars for the parking if you don't have Northwest Forest Pass. There is usually a ranger walking around the parking lot to make sure everyone has purchased a parking permit, so don't try to take your chance and not buying one! If you need to get some change, you can ask the range too!
Unlike Lost Lake, there isn't a lodge to provide you supplies and snacks. So make sure you bring enough water with you. The facility at Trillium Lake does not offer boat rental either. However, you can choose to bring your own canoe and any other flotation device to the lake. Keep in mind that motorized device is not allowed at Trillium Lake. So don't bring any motor boat with you. You won't find a place to lay down the motor boat either.
While you are at Trillium Lake, you will also see many dogs swimming in the lake and most of these dogs are Labrador Retrievers! Many Oregonians bring their beloved dogs to here for their first swim in the lake. So if you also happen to have a dog yourself, make sure to bring your dog with you to Trillium Lake! They will definitely enjoy the lake just as much as you do! If you are not a fan of swimming in the lake, there are also several hiking trails around the lake. The easier trail would be hiking around the lake in a look. This will only take around 30 minutes. There are other trails that are more difficult and have high elevation gain. Overall, Trillium Lake is a great place to spend a day at and enjoy the nature!
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