Lest all of my readers think that Matt and I only go on outings to the Japanese Gardens and the zoo, I thought I would include pictures from our hike in Forest Park a couple of weeks ago. I was aware that there were hiking trails in the area around the zoo (Washington Park), but didn't realize that there were 5100 acres and over 70 miles of hiking trails in the adjacent area (north)! The park is relatively long and narrow, and follows the Columbia River on the other side of NW St. Helens Rd (Hwy 30). I found it interesting that it is the largest forested area within city limits in the United States. A main trail called the Wildwood Trail traverses the entire length of the park, and several smaller trails branch off and often form loops.
Our first hike was along Birch Path to where it connects to the Wildwood Trail, and then to the Leif Erickson and Dogwood Trails to make a round trip.
We had planned to make it a 3 mile hike, but due to a small map reading error, we ended up taking a 2 mile detour. It was worth it though! We saw lots of birds - primarily woodpeckers. There were little warbler-like birds everywhere, but I wanted to enjoy the scenery and plan to go birding on our next trip. We did see a pair of downy woodpeckers that were only about 15 feet away foraging for food. They totally ignored us, and we got a really good, long look. I like being able to bird without binoculars.
The day was pretty warm (over 80) but the entire area we hiked was densely wooded and the canopy kept us shaded and cool for the entire hike. We are looking forward to exploring more trails this coming winter. I want to have the lay of the land down so that I can bird for warblers and such in the spring!
1 comment:
so is your husband anything like mine in that he acts like I am slowest being on earth when it comes to hiking?? Wait I forgot who I was talking to...... :)
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