Permits required to hike Dog Mountain on weekends during the peak of wildflower season will go on sale a little earlier this year, beginning on March 1.

It's the third year in a row permits will be required on Saturday and Sunday, from April 18 to June 14, to climb a trail famous across the Northwest for its golden fields of balsamroot on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge.

A total of 100 permits will be released on March 1 for each day through the permit season, the U.S. Forest Service announced Monday.

After that, an additional block of 100 permits will be released online three days before each permit date at 7 a.m.

"As the season progresses, there may be adjustments made to the number of late-breaking permits to match parking patterns," a news release said.

Hiking:Challenging Dog Mountain offers peak wildflower viewing in Columbia Gorge

Permits began at Dog Mountain, located east of Stevenson, Wash., in 2018 after congestion became a major issue during the peak of wildflower season, even leading to a fatal accident in 2015.

Two West Linn students died in a three-car crash at the trailhead in 2015.

How to get a permit for Dog Mountain

Every hiker on the Dog Mountain Trail system on Saturdays and Sundays between April 18 and June 14 will be required to carry a permit (or digital proof).

There are two ways for hikers to obtain permits:

1: Ride the shuttle from Stevenson. A permit is included with the cost of the Skamania County West End Transit bus from Skamania Fairgrounds in Stevenson. Seats are available on a first come, first served basis, for $1 per person per trip, or $2 roundtrip (cash, exact change only). Each permit is good for one individual on the day it is issued. The shuttle runs every half hour from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends from April 18 to June 14.

2: Reserve a permit online. Anyone parking at Dog Mountain Trailhead will need to reserve one permit for each person online at recreation.gov and pay the $1 processing administrative fee, per person, in addition to paying the recreation site fee of $5 per car.

Valid Northwest Forest or interagency federal passes are accepted as a form of paying the parking fee but are not a substitute for having the per person permit.

The permit system is designed to limit congestion, but a permit does not guarantee a parking spot will be available at the time a hiker arrives, so visitors are encouraged to carpool or arrive early, the news release said.

Zach Urness has been an outdoors reporter, photographer and videographer in Oregon for 12 years. To support his work, subscribe to the Statesman Journal. Urness is the author of “Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon” and “Hiking Southern Oregon.” He can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on Twitter at @ZachsORoutdoors.