Located twenty miles east of the city of Portland and the northern Willamette River valley, the Mt. Hood National Forest extends south from the strikingly beautiful Columbia River Gorge across more than sixty miles of forested mountains, lakes and streams to Olallie Scenic Area, a high lake basin under the slopes of Mt. Jefferson. Enjoy fishing, camping, boating, and hiking in the summer, hunting in the fall, and skiing and other snow sports in the winter. Berry-picking and mushroom collection are popular, and for many area residents, a trip in December to cut the family's Christmas tree is a long-standing tradition.