Exploring the Pacific Greenway: from Portland to the Coast

Double Cross Loop

“Portland Wilderness Walks” by Jim Thayer and published by Timber press will be released in the Spring of 2008. It will describe this trail in detail including professional maps, photos, comprehensive coverage of the fauna, flora and history of the area.

I have retained a brief summary of the walks on this site along with the my original maps, but would urge the interested hiker to purchase the book as it contains a much more in-depth coverage of directions and the context of each of the walks. Moreover there is much more in the book that will give more meaning to these walks than could possibly be conveyed by these funky GPS generated maps. The experience of finding, recording and understanding the significance of these walks brought me a whole new understanding of how important the wild outskirts of Portland are to our culture and to our heritage. And my hope is to acquaint you not only with some exquisite wilderness hikes, but perhaps also a new way to consider the importance of what lies on the outskirts of our fair city.

Us this site for easily downloadable rudimentary maps, but do consider investing in the book (it’s designed to fit in your pocket) for a more thorough and meaningful look at these forests. - Jim Thayer

Brief summary: The trail uses the so-called “Cable trail” (see Cable Trail to Rocky Point Road hike) to enter the area, descending along the descending track to the ridgeline where the discarded choker cables give this route its name.

Using a hidden bushwhack route into an almost inaccessible portion of the Crabapple/Patterson Creeks area, this trail provides access to the northern Patterson Creek watershed. This is the only way to access this remote area on a day hike, since alternative routes would require at least 4 miles of hiking to even approach this area.

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This is a view from Rocky Point Road looking SE up the Willamette river towards the north end of Forest park (ridge rising under small cloud in center) and Wildwood Golf Course at the bottom of the hill on the left. Skyline Rd. follows the ridge line to the right. Note the clear cutting in the foreground and along ridge on right. Much more is not visible below.