hikespeak

Camassia Natural Area contains something special – one of the best wildflower displays in the greater Portland area. From April to May, the grassy plateaus in this 27-acre preserve boasts beautiful purples, blues, pinks and yellows created by Camas lilies, blue-eyed Mary, rosy plectritis, and buttercups (as well as other flowers). Explore this West Linn jewel on an easy 0. ...Read more.

Searching for a short hike in the Portland area? Scouters Mountain Nature Park in Happy Valley makes a worthwhile destination for a 1.2-mile hike. Explore a forested cinder cone east of Portland, plotting your way through tall firs to a summit clearing with a direct sight of Mount Hood. If you work up an appetite, picnic under a pavilion at the top of Scouters Mountain. ...Read more.

What's so appealing about Canemah Bluff Nature Park in Oregon City? Start with fields of spring wildflowers and views of Willamette Falls. Then add ferny forests and a historical cemetery to give visitors plenty of reasons to take this 1.7-mile hike. In April and early May, Camas lilies steal the show at Canemah Bluff Nature Park, providing pops of purple to a meadow on a landing above the Willamette River. ...Read more.

Right before spilling into the Columbia River, the Deschutes River flows down a canyon between grass and sagebrush-covered ridges with basalt outcroppings. Alongside the river, a pair of parallel trails allow hikers to enjoy a 3.1-mile loop with a variety of fine views. The level River Trail (also known as Blackberry Trail) hugs the riverbank, while the rolling Upper Trail (also known as Riverview Trail) crosses a grassy terrace with broader vistas up and down the Deschutes. ...Read more.

Catherine Creek Arch is a surprising creation - a bridge-like span of rock along a ledge of basalt. A 1-mile round trip hike leads to the foot of Catherine Creek Arch (and longer loops in the area are also possible). This short and sweet outing entertains hikers of all ages. Part of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, Catherine Creek is located on the Washington side of the west end of the gorge, where lovely views are easy to find. ...Read more.

Hikers pack the slopes of Dog Mountain to see spring wildflowers, but tackling a lot of elevation is not required to see one of the best blooms in Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. Instead, visit Catherine Creek, where an easy, paved 0.9-mile loop (with just 100 feet of elevation change) floods with wildflowers in the spring and early summer. ...Read more.

One hike in Northwest Oregon really rises above the rest. Saddle Mountain is the highest point in the northern half of the Coast Range with sweeping 360-degree from a 3,283-foot summit that look out over the Pacific Ocean, the Columbia River, and inland toward the Cascade Range. The hike up Saddle Mountain Trail is 5 miles round trip with 1,635 feet of elevation change (including steep passages). ...Read more.

Forest Park is a wonderful place to take a short hike in Portland. For a 5-trail, four-season outing, check out Dogwood Trail – Alder Trail Loop, which actually uses Keil Trail, Dogwood Trail, Leif Erikson Drive, Alder Trail, and Wildwood Trail to form a 2.8-mile circuit with just over 400 feet of elevation change. In the summer, these Forest Park trails offer cooling shade. ...Read more.

The Haystack is a diminutive volcanic dome with great views of the enormous, snowy mass of Mount Shasta. Haystack Trail presents a 2.55-mile lollipop loop hike that tours the Haystack's summit plateau, boasting broad views in all directions that include Mount Shasta, the Klamath Mountains, and Shasta Valley. This high desert hike passes through juniper and sage that get embellished by spring wildflowers like lupines and Indian paintbrush. ...Read more.

Las Virgenes View Park preserves nearly 700 acres of the Santa Monica Mountains adjacent to Malibu Creek State Park. The park has one established trail, Las Virgenes View Trail, which rises to a panorama-boasting ridge. The trail traverses grasslands and oak woodlands near Las Virgenes Road and then runs up a canyon to a ridge where it forms a small loop with mountain views in all directions. ...Read more.