Craig Romano - Day Hiking Columbia River Gorge: National Scenic Area, Silver Star Scenic Area, Portland-vancouver to the Dalles

These twenty-five additional hikes and walks within and near the Columbia River Gorge are worth considering. Have fun exploring them.

1. Whipple Creek: Find 4.3 miles of trails in this 300-acre Clark County park, near the county fairgrounds south of Ridgefield, Washington. Heavy equestrian use.

2. Salmon Creek: Beautiful 3-mile paved trail in greenbelt along Salmon River between Hazel Dell and Felida, north of Vancouver, Washington.

3. Frenchmans Bar: Nice 2.5-mile paved trail along Columbia River to Vancouver Lake just west of Vancouver, Washington.

4. Stairway: Seldom-hiked, steep and rough 3.7-mile trail to ridge east of Silver Star, Washingtons Silver Star Scenic Area. Experienced hikers only.

5. Ridell Lake: Quiet, oft-overlooked short nature trail to small pond beneath Beacon Rock, in Washingtons Beacon Rock State Park, near Skamania.

6. Doetsch Loop: Very nice 1-mile paved trail (ADA) in the Beacon Rock State Parks Doetsch Day-Use Area, near Skamania, Washington.

7. Zig Zag Lake: Half-mile trail to small remote lake (accessed from FR 42, near Carson, Washington) between Trapper Creek Wilderness and Mowich Butte.

8. Falls Creek Falls: Nice 1.7-mile trail to pretty cascade just east of Trapper Creek Wilderness. Access from Wind River Road, near Carson, Washington.

9. Three Corner Rock: Easy 4.8-mile or challenging 18-mile hike to prominent landmark north of Table Mountain on the Pacific Crest Trail. Washington State DNR road access near Skamania, long and rough.

10. Nestor Peak: Round-trip 8 miles in heavily logged and roaded state forest to a 3088-foot former lookout site. Access is from SR 141, near White Salmon, Washington.

11. Monte Cristo: Round-trip 5 miles to 4000-foot peak and excellent views. Access is from Oklahoma Road north of Willard, Washington.

12. Monte Carlo: Round-trip 4 miles to 4100-foot peak and excellent views. Access is from Oklahoma Road north of Willard, Washington.

13. Burdoin Mountain: Miles of mainly mountain-bike trails on peak above White Salmon, Washington. The Forest Service is reviewing the area and working on a trail plan.

14 Rowland Hill: Nice couple-mile loop on old roads across meadows and open forest in Catherine Creek Area, near Lyle, Washington.

15. Smith and Bybee Wetlands: Paved ADA nature trail through 2000-acre wetland Metro Park within Portland city limits. Excellent bird-watching opportunities.

16. Council Crest: Hike to Portlands highest summit for stunning city and country views from Marquam Park, located just south of downtown.

17. Mary S. Young State Park: Several miles of quiet trails in small state park on the Willamette River in West Linn, south of Portland.

18. Trout Lake: Nice but busy park with nature trails in Troutdale, east of Portland.

19. Munra Point: Scramble path up prominent landmark near Eagle Creek, near Cascade Locks, Oregon. Experienced scramblers only.

20. Tanner CreekMoffett Creek: Quiet, nearly abandoned trail along Tanner Creek, near Cascade Locks, Oregon. Solitude guaranteed.

21. Ruckel Ridge: Very difficult unofficial trail up Ruckel Ridge on Benson Plateau, near Cascade Locks, Oregon. Strong hikers only, with scrambling skills.

22. Shellrock Mountain: Round-trip 3 miles on user-built trail halfway up Shellrock Mountain, providing excellent views. Access is from I-84 near Cascade Locks, Oregon, milepost 53.

23. Viento Lake and Starvation Creek Falls: Small nature trail to Viento Lake in Viento State Park, near Hood River, Oregon, and nice 1.3-mile paved path from the park to Starvation Creek Falls.

24. Hood River Mountain: Short, easy loop hike up small mountain to big views on SDS Lumber Company land. Access is from Old Dalles Road from Hood River, Oregon.

25. The Dalles Waterfront Trail: Very nice paved riverfront trail, accessed from several points from downtown in The Dalles, Oregon.

Bishop Morris, Ellen. Hiking Oregons Geology. 2nd ed. Seattle: The Mountaineers Books, 2004.

Cottrell Houle, Marcy. One Citys Wilderness: Portlands Forest Park, 3rd ed. Corvallis, OR: Oregon State University Press, 2010.

Dietrich, William. Northwest Passage: The Columbia River. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1996.

Egan, Timothy. The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire that Saved America. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009.

Jolley, Russ. Wildflowers of the Columbia Gorge: A Comprehensive Field Guide. Portland: Oregon Historical Society Press, 1988.

Manning, Harvey, Bob Spring, and Ira Spring. Mountain Flowers of the Cascades and Olympics. 2nd ed. Seattle: The Mountaineers Books, 2002.

Mueller, Marge, and Ted Mueller. Exploring Washingtons Wild Areas. 2nd ed. Seattle: The Mountaineers Books, 2002.

. Washington State Parks: A Complete Recreation Guide. 3rd ed. Seattle: The Mountaineers Books, 2004.

Renner, Jeff. Lightning Strikes: Staying Safe Under Stormy Skies. Seattle: The Mountaineers Books, 2002.

Stewart, Martyn, Stephen Whitney, and Elizabeth Briars Hart. Birdsongs of the Pacific Northwest. CD and field guide. Seattle: The Mountaineers Books, 2006.

Whitney, Stephen R., and Rob Sanderlin. Field Guide to the Cascades and Olympics. 2nd ed. Seattle: The Mountaineers Books, 2003.

Cape Horn Conservancy

http://capehorntrail.org

Columbia Gorge Refuge Stewards

www.refugestewards.org

Columbia Land Trust

(360) 696-0131

www.columbialandtrust.org

Forest Park Conservancy

(503) 223-5449

www.forestparkconservancy.org

Friends of the Columbia Gorge

(503) 241-3762

www.gorgefriends.org

Friends of Powell Butte Nature Park

www.friendsofpowellbutte.org

Friends of the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge

www.ridgefieldfriends.org

Friends of Tryon Creek

(503) 636-4398

www.tryonfriends.org

Klickitat Trail Conservancy

www.klickitat-trail.org

Mazamas

(503) 227-2345

www.mazamas.org

The Mountaineers

(206) 521-6001

www.mountaineers.org

The Nature Conservancy Oregon Field Office

(503) 230-1221

www.nature.org

The Nature Conservancy Washington Field Office

(206) 343-4344

www.nature.org

Pacific Crest Trail Association

(916) 285-1846

www.pcta.org

Spring Trust for Trails

springtrailtrust.org

Trails Club of Oregon

www.trailsclub.org

Trailkeepers of Oregon

www.trailkeepersoforegon.org

Washington Trails Association

(206) 625-1367

www.wta.org

Craig first saw the Columbia River in 1980 while on a cross-country bicycle trip from the East Coast. Nine years later, Washington State lured him from New Hampshire, where he had first fallen in love with the natural world. A former Boy Scout, backcountry ranger in the White Mountain National Forest, and ski bum in Vermont, Craig found his calling in the outdoors. He has traveled extensively, including working as a guide for several seasons in Europes Pyrenees Mountains. From Alaska to Argentina, Sicily to South Korea, Craig has hit the trail seeking wild and spectacular landscapes. He ranks Washington State among the most beautiful places on the planet, and he has thoroughly hiked itover 14,000 miles worth, from Cape Flattery in the northwest to Puffer Butte in the southeast, Cape Disappointment in the southwest to the Salmo-Priest Wilderness in the northeast. He has spent many a mile in Oregon too, from Cascade Head on the coast to Steens Mountain in the Great Basin.