Exploring the Pacific Greenway: from Portland to the Coast

Introduction

This section is devoted to a long term project that seeks to survey 3 publicly accessible walking routes from Portland to the Oregon Coast. The idea for this project (and the 1 book that has resulted so far) originated from the “Pacific Greenway” project that was initiated by Keith Hay in 1992. This bold initiative sought to establish three separate routes that would connect Forest Park with the Coast Range thus providing a recreational corridor through some of Oregon’s thickest forests in a part of the state that has received little recognition.

Until 2006 the Pacific Greenway project recreational development in Oregon’s Northwest “corner” languished for lack of resources and adherents. However, a growing population of hikers, runners, bikers and equestrians are seeking new venues for their explorations and as a result the Northwest quadrant of Oregon has begun to attract serious attention. In recent years the Vernonia-Banks linear trail has opened and introduced thousands to the beauties of Washington County’s more remote western reaches. Recently, Columbia County purchased the Crown Zellerback road that connects Scappoose to Vernonia and the county plans to open this trail to the public as another “linear park”. Eventually it may connect with the Vernonia-Banks trail.

Forest Park, which forms the basis for half the trails in this volume, is yet another invaluable “wilderness” asset that adds immeasurably to Portland’s much vaunted “quality of life”. Most Forest Park guides concentrate on the more accessible and popular trails like the Wildwood Trail and Leif Erikson Drive. In keeping with the “wilderness” focus of this guide, the twenty trails reviewed in this book have been chosen for their “off the beaten track” qualities, their quiet and undisturbed ambiance and for the rugged beauty of their natural settings.

The most significant contribution of this guide is not the lesser known trails inside Forest Park, but the survey and presentation of a whole new part of Oregon as prime hiking country. The northern portion of the Tualatin Hills has never been described in any guide to hiking in Oregon, and yet it is a treasure trove of close-in, accessible hikes of remarkable beauty, surprising remoteness and full of local cultural history.

The result of more than four years of intensive exploration, research, GPS mapping and interviews with local residents in the Northern Tualatin Hills, this guidebook adds a new chapter to Oregon’s recreational literature by opening a hiking gateway to the NW corner of Oregon – all within 30 minutes driving time from downtown Portland.

While all this may sound eminently rational and useful, I have to admit this guidebook is at least partially the result of my passion...for getting “lost” in the woods.

I know it’s loopy, it’s pointless and even my dog doubts my sanity at times, but I can’t stop mucking around in the woods. I usually arrive home many hours late, wet to the bone, with twigs sticking out of my hair, my hat transformed into a soil sample collector and bramble scratches over every exposed inch of my body. Yet, all week long I dream about wandering down long-abandoned logging roads. I recall the mists and fog sweeping up the valleys during my last visit and I can’t seem to stop wondering what was around that last bend in the road.

In keeping with my eclectic curiosity about this region, I’ve also attempted to introduce you to a sampling of the many local plants and animals. Where possible I’ve shared accounts of the local Indians, the early settlers and the rough hewn communities they built.

With this book I hope that I can bring you one step closer to sharing the thrill of spotting a coyote up ahead, or being awestruck by the grace of a solitary “baldie” sweeping overhead. And maybe someday we’ll meet somewhere very deep in the woods.

Happy Trails!

Jim Thayer, December 1, 2006