Elev. Gain: 800 feet

Where: NW PDX

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Forest Park

Portland's Forest Park is the largest forested city park in the United States. Covering 5,000 acres, the Park stretches for nearly eight miles along the northeast slope of the Tualatin Mountains between NW Skyline Boulevard and NW St. Helens Road (Hwy. 30).

It's amazing how many people in Portland have no idea where Forest Park is or what an amazing place it is. There are miles of hiking, biking and running trails, the longest of which is the Wildwood Trail - 30 miles long. You can find long easy, level trails ideal for jogging, or steep climbs to get the heart pounding and build up those calves. From the base of the mountains to the summit is around 800 feet, a little more in some places.

The best map I've seen of the park can be found at the Audobon Society book store on Cornell Drive.

Good links for Forest Park information:

Friends of Forest Park

The city's official parks site Lots of info and links to some PDF maps.

This is Forest Park in winter. I love the play of light and fog in the trees.