Macleay Park — Attraction in Portland

This place is fantastic and I can thank a recent field trip I took for a science class for cluing me in about it (We were doing a bio-assessment on Balch Creek by collecting macroinvertebrates if you were curious). This creek happens to be a tributary of the Willamette River and was named after Danford Balch, who was the first person legally hanged in the state of Oregon.

While wandering around in this park it is hard to believe that you are located just minutes away from Portland's city center. Macleay Park is one of the entrances of Forrest Park.

There are a couple fairly easy hikes you can choose to do from this starting location. The longest one is about a five mile round trip haul and heads right up to the Pittock Mansion. I actually wish I had looked at the hiking map posted at the park entrance to learn about this. I believe I turned around to head back right before reaching the mansion.

One of the great things about hiking around in this section of forest park is Balch Creek flows right near you. I always find it extra relaxing to hear the sounds of water while hanging out in nature.

If you need to get out of the house and be one with nature, but don't want to travel far from home. This is the...

After reading a circa 2003 study on resident coastal cutthroat trout living in Balch Creek, I decided to take it upon myself to visit the area to see if there were still fish 15 years later. Instead of arming myself with an electrofisher, as the study authors had done, or even bringing a rod and reel (Creek is closed to angling unfortunately), I decided to bring a copious amount of marijuana to enjoy while completing my survey. The amount of foot traffic remained fairly steady considering it was a Tuesday afternoon. The air was cool and strong gusts of autumn wind blew through the trees. As I made my way past the witches castle and further in to the park, I began to see fewer and fewer fellow visitors. This afternoon's journey took me from Macleay Park along the wildwood trail to the Pittock mansion. Macleay Park and the larger Forest Park are amazing treasures, pieces of nature a short walk away...

A Friday hike in Forest Park on the Lower Macleay and Wildwood Trails. The Lower Macleay Trail was full of people and was hard to enjoy the views. The trail takes you over several footbridges over Balch Creek with a large variety of trees and plants. The sound of birds and the creek provide a nice experience as you hike. The trail ends at the Stone House and becomes the Wildwood Trail if you want to hike above the canyon. You will find rocks and tree roots on the trail that may trip you up. The trail became less crowded after the Stone House with a steep climb to the Audubon House. I turned around at this point It was a sharp descent back to the trailhead. The trail continues to the Pittock Mansion and Washington Park if you want a longer hike. I enjoyed the hike on the two trails despite the crowd on the trails Parking is very limited near the Lower...