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Take time for a fall hike
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The leaves are changing-- get out and enjoy the colors!
Does your dog look longingly out the window with a dreamy look in his eyes and his leash in his mouth? Have you been mistaking fluorescent lighting for sunshine? Then it’s probably time you got outside! The leaves are changing, there’s definitely a nip in the air, and fall is a great time for a hike. Stretch your legs and enjoy the great outdoors now before the prolonged rainy season sets in.
No time you say? Think again. Hiking is a great way to combine exercising, socializing, and communing with Mother Nature. You’re actually managing time very well when you hike. Meet a friend at a trailhead, or if it’s practical, carpool there together. If both of you have kids or dogs, take them along— alleviating any guilty feelings you might have about not spending more time with your family. You can also squeeze in a fall hike by finding a trail not too distant from where you work and hike in the evening. Just be careful to get back before dark, and as a precaution, hike with a flashlight or headlamp in your pack. Also be aware of hunting season. Consider wearing something blaze orange if you’ll be in the vicinity of hunters.
A close-in hiking destination to consider this time of year is Portland’s Washington Park. Take MAX and you’ll even avoid traffic and parking hassles. Washington Park is full of criss-crossing forested loop trails of varying lengths and difficulties that lead to some of Portland’s finest attractions. The first six miles of the 30-mile Wildwood Trail (trailhead near the zoo) passes the Vietnam Veteran Memorial, Japanese Gardens, Hoyt Arboretum, and Pittock Mansion, so you can even do a little sight-seeing along the way.
The Marquam Trail also begins near the zoo and climbs to 1,073-foot Council Crest. From the brick observation patio on Council Crest’s summit you’re treated to sweeping views of five Cascade mountains—from Mount Rainier to Mount Jefferson (plaques identify each peak). The trail then winds through both woods and neighborhoods over to Oregon Health Sciences University. From there, take the aerial tram down the hill, board the Portland Streetcar to downtown, then catch MAX back to your starting point in Washington Park. Talk about time management— you get a city tour and some exercise all at the same time!
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
William Sullivan, author of 12 books on Oregon travel, history and hiking, provides maps and more details on these and other hikes at http://www.oregon.com/hiking.
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