Gaper Day and June Powder: Skiing Timberline on Mt. Hood in May and June 2020
SkiBuds
In spring 2020, Mt. Hood gave SkiBuds a few more weeks of riding. After the first two months of the lockdown in Little Cottonwood Canyon, founder Stephen Phillips built a bed in a car and drove to Oregon. In the 2021 history article, Stephen wrote that this trip, to meet up with friend Michael for a week, was when “the development began again.” The weeks that followed included spring slush at Timberline, a June powder day, kiting in the Columbia River Gorge and the first lift-status feature in the SkiBuds app. This story follows the SkiBuds Instagram posts from May to July 2020, plus December 2020 and January 2021 posts about Bend, with their publication dates.
Gaper Day at Timberline
On May 26, 2020, a story read simply “SkiBuds crew back together.” The next day the account posted a chairlift selfie with a two-word caption: “Gaper Day.” Two riders sit in sunglasses and flat-brim caps under tall firs and a blue sky, with printed neck gaiters pulled over their faces. Both gaiters carry SkiBuds lettering. The hashtags included #springslush and #wearyourmask. The history article captions the same photo “Timberline, May 2020.”
The account's stories that day showed what late May on Mt. Hood looks like. In one, the chair climbs over soft, tracked-out snow toward the summit, a skier carving below. In another, a sticker-covered snowboard rests on the rider's foot on the chair, its top sheet covered in wet, granular slush.
“Pow day in June”
Twelve days later the weather turned. On the morning of June 8, a story showed the same stickered board on a chair climbing into fog, with fresh snow on the trees, a 33°F temperature sticker, a tag for Timberline Lodge and the words “Pow day in june.” That evening, a story reshared from Stephen's account showed a kiteboard on a sidewalk: “Mine as well do the double day. Pow + kitesurf.”
The next evening the account posted a photo from the powder day, geotagged on Mt. Hood:
“Yesterday was on point. 8”-12” of pure magic. The skibuds team is hard on some ground breaking ideas!”
The hashtags said the rest: #junepow, #itsjune, #junemiracle and #liftsstillspinning.
A June storm on Mt. Hood is a gift, but it comes with fog and flat light, and the temperature sits right around freezing. On a day like that, stay close to your riding partner, regroup at lift towers or the bottom of the chair, and expect the new snow to turn heavy as soon as the sun comes out. Our guide to planning a powder day with friends covers how to keep a group together when visibility drops.
Building lift status from a car in Oregon
The account had been building new features for weeks. On May 30 a story showed a laptop with the app's new Mountain Info screen, including a Lift Status panel, with the words “Extra stoked to be adding in some cool features. Today has been a cranking day.” The next day: “Check out the new skibuds release coming out in the iOS App Store. Abasin and timberline have the new feature.”
Push alerts came next. On July 3 a story read: “Lift status notifications getting close... Very excited about this feature. Cloud functions, cron jobs, and APNs!!!” On the morning of July 4: “Couldn't sleep. Started working at 5am. Lift status push notifications should be just about ready to go.”
In the 2021 history article, Stephen described those weeks as “kiting the gorge (Hood River)/ pistol river, and the whole Oregon coast, sleeping in my car, and working on implementing lift status notifications.” The idea was to help on a powder day, “when you are trying to plan which lifts to hit based on when they open up.” It didn't work everywhere. Many resorts began reporting lifts expected to open as open, so outside some smaller resorts the feature was “somewhat useless.” Timberline was one of the smaller resorts where it still worked: “timberline still works great.” Lift status is not part of the current plans for the rebuilt SkiBuds app, which is coming soon.
A flag at sunset in the Columbia River Gorge
Between mountain days, the summer moved to the river. On June 22 the account posted a campsite with a SkiBuds flag, a tent and an open car: “Fun last minute visit from my bro! Got in 4 days of some super good kiting.” The spot was “one of the coolest spots I've camped at,” until it turned out to be “too good to be true,” in the words of the park ranger the next morning. The history article shows that photo with the caption “Camping with my brother- Hood River.”
On June 28, from the Gorge, came a sunset and a flag: “Sunsets are always better with a flag and some wind.” The post was tagged #hoodriver.
Three days later, on July 1, the account posted a long account of a solo kiting session that went wrong on the river. It included a line that applies to a summer snowfield as well: “Having a buddy isn't just a fun thing it's a safety feature.” On July 26 a story read: “Headed back to Portland tomorrow and heading south… Got tons of stickers with me.”
Bend in December
That Oregon summer also led to a friendship. In January 2021, the account wrote about meeting Francesca Jacquez “this summer when I was down in pistol river. She was so enthusiastic about getting more into snowboarding and wasn't sure if she should buy a splitboard or not.” By the next winter, the account wrote, she had been “exploring bend Oregon like crazy.” On December 16, 2020, the account posted a SkiBuds flag held up among snow-loaded firs, tagged Bend and Mt. Bachelor: “Skibuds hits bend!!! Thanks for the shot Francesca!!!”
Francesca wrote about her first season splitboarding from Bend in one of the first SkiBuds blog stories. If you are heading into the backcountry around Bend, read how to read an avalanche forecast and how to find a backcountry ski partner first. For lift-served days, our Mt. Bachelor guide notes that West Village, Sunrise and Skyliner are separate arrival areas, so agree on one before you drive up from Bend.
Planning a late-season Mt. Hood day with friends
- Check Timberline's current calendar first. Our Timberline guide notes that winter terrain and summer snowfield skiing are different experiences, with a different operating plan, and that lift openings depend on weather and snow. Don't assume the full winter trail map, a lesson or a particular lift is running. Check Timberline's summer skiing and snowboarding page and the current mountain report for dates and lifts.
- Name the building. Timberline has the historic Timberline Lodge and the separate Wy'East Day Lodge. Say which one in your invitation, and pick a meeting spot there.
- Plan for sun. Spring and summer sun on snow is strong. Bring sunscreen, lip balm and good sunglasses or goggles, and reapply during the day.
- Time the slush. Spring snow can be firm early, soft by midday and heavy later. Agree on a plan for when the snow gets sticky, and a time to call it.
- Expect weather to change. Less than two weeks after Gaper Day sunshine in late May, June 2020 brought 8 to 12 inches of new snow and fog. Pack a layer, check the snow forecast and set a regrouping spot at the lodge, not somewhere on the hill.
- Stay in open terrain. Summer skiing runs under a different operating plan, so check exactly which terrain is open. Ride only open, marked runs and respect closures and ropes.
- Share the drive. Check the current mountain report and driving information before heading up from Government Camp. One car is easier to manage than several. See our ski carpool planning guide.
- In winter, say which resort. “Mt. Hood” can also mean Mt. Hood Meadows, which has its own beginner areas, gated expert terrain such as Heather Canyon, and Nordic skiing at Hood River Meadows. Say which resort and which activity you're planning.
For more Oregon mountains, see our Oregon guide. If you're looking for people to ride with, start with how to find snowboard friends and our ski buddy meetup checklist. For a different Pacific Northwest winter, read about Mt. Baker powder days.
Questions riders ask
Can you ski Timberline in the summer?
Timberline's summer skiing runs under a different operating plan from winter, and lift openings depend on weather and snow. Check Timberline's current calendar and mountain report before you plan a trip. The SkiBuds posts in this story document late May and June.
Is it worth skiing Mt. Hood in June?
It can be. SkiBuds rode spring slush at Timberline in late May 2020, and on June 9 the account described the previous day as “8”-12” of pure magic.” Expect anything from soft spring snow to fog and fresh snow, and bring sun protection and a warm layer.
Can beginners snowboard Mt. Hood late in the season?
Summer skiing runs under a different operating plan, so check exactly which terrain is open, and don't assume lessons or beginner terrain are available. Check what is open, ride only open, marked runs, watch for slushy snow and ride with a partner.
Photos and quotations come from posts and stories on the SkiBuds Instagram account between May 2020 and January 2021, and from Stephen Phillips's 2021 history article. Dates are the dates the posts were published.