Cedar Island Park — Attraction in West Linn

This park is definitely a hidden gem in Portland! Maybe people don't know about it, or maybe they're just not interested in hiking all the way down to the river... either way Cedar Island Park has such a "remote feel" even in the middle of the summer. In order to get to this island you have to park at Mary's Young State Park and hike down to the river (or float in by boat/kayak) It's not a long hike though, maybe 20 minutes tops. There's even an off-leash dog park that's part of Mary's Young Park on the river right before the trail takes you to Cedar Island. Once you get to Cedar Island there is a bridge that you have to cross. During the wintertime (and high water season) they remove the bridge so it is inaccessible during this time of year. They normally move the bridge back into place around late April, but it all depends on the water levels. I just started paddling boarding with my dog recently and I definitely plan on coming out here this upcoming summer...

Inside of that horseshoe is one of my favorite places to fish, my buddy showed it too me as it's right out in front of his house. He has caught all kinds of fish in there. They even have fishing piers that are perfect to fish from. It's pretty much like fishing in a lake. It's is supposed to be a NO WAKE ZONE because it's a Wildlife Preserve, but jet-skier's are always making circles in there ( which don't really bother me, there just driving the fish towards me lol.). It is very easy to get to as well, and there is little walking to get to the spot. The river drops off to about 12 feet about a foot from the shore so if your going to swim there, those fishing piers are perfect for laying out all your stuff, letting your girl tan and you guys can jump of the pier into the deep water easily. The peer is on land and its about 7-8 feet off the ground about 2-3 feet from shore. I love to fish this place, you should definitely check it...

I hiked to the longer end of this "V"-shaped island. There's no smooth trail along the bank so watch your footing as you'll step on scattered rocks. There are a lot of Himalayan blackberries on the island; they were sweet as I had a few handful. Plz see pic. Some people fished, swam, and hiked. On the water, the well-to-do scooted around on jet skis which made it hard to enjoy the quiet ...