Trip Report: Boulder Ridge Trail in the Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness
When: 03/29/2018
Location: Boulder Ridge Trail
Conditions: Beautiful spring weather, snow on the trail at the very top early in the season!
Duration: 4 hours with breaks and lunch.
Difficulty: Moderate
Kid Friendly: Yes
Pet Friendly: Yes
Usefull links: www.oregonhikers.org
The Full Report:
This is a wonderful Trail, not far from Portland, that my fiancé and I hiked one morning in late March. The weather was beautiful the sun was shining so we decided to hike the Boulder Ridge Trail that starts at the Wildwood recreation center. Be mindful that there is a five-dollar fee for parking.
We left the parking lot and walked through the interpretive area to the trailhead. After crossing a small creek there is a board with a notebook to sign your names. You start the trail by walking over wet rocks that look like stairs with wonderful green moss Painted all over them. The trail is very well marked.
Within the 1st mile, there is a beautiful outlook where are you can see Mount Hood and the forest below. From there you will continue for miles with a steady incline. Along the trail, we saw plenty of beautiful flowers and interesting mushrooms, and as we curved back-and-forth and there were glimpses of Mount Hood poking through the trees.
About 3/4 of the way up we hit a Ridgeline and soon found a big beautiful rock where we sat and had lunch in the sunshine. From there we continued along the Ridgeline and were met with a foot of snow. As we traveled further of the snow got deeper.
At some point, my fiancé stepped in and went as deep as her waist and that is when we decided to turn back. We were probably only about a half mile or so from the beautiful Rocky outcropping with Summit views. For this reason, I would advise waiting until late May to hike this trail if you would like to go to the peak or possibly bringing some lightweight snowshoes. Either way is totally worth it in the forest is absolutely gorgeous.
The steep incline is a great work out without being too rigorous. I would recommend this trail to anyone, but your fitness level will determine how far you will get! The cool thing about this hike is that there are plenty other beautiful things to see down in the Wildwood recreation center when you are done, including a Fish viewing center, a boardwalk through a beautiful marsh, and open space for a picnic!
I will definitely be going back to the Boulder Ridge Trail!
The Full Report:
This is a wonderful Trail, not far from Portland, that my fiancé and I hiked one morning in late March. The weather was beautiful the sun was shining so we decided to hike the Boulder Ridge Trail that starts at the Wildwood recreation center. Be mindful that there is a five-dollar fee for parking.
We left the parking lot and walked through the interpretive area to the trailhead. After crossing a small creek there is a board with a notebook to sign your names. You start the trail by walking over wet rocks that look like stairs with wonderful green moss Painted all over them. The trail is very well marked.
Within the 1st mile, there is a beautiful outlook where are you can see Mount Hood and the forest below. From there you will continue for miles with a steady incline. Along the trail, we saw plenty of beautiful flowers and interesting mushrooms, and as we curved back-and-forth and there were glimpses of Mount Hood poking through the trees.
About 3/4 of the way up we hit a Ridgeline and soon found a big beautiful rock where we sat and had lunch in the sunshine. From there we continued along the Ridgeline and were met with a foot of snow. As we traveled further of the snow got deeper.
At some point, my fiancé stepped in and went as deep as her waist and that is when we decided to turn back. We were probably only about a half mile or so from the beautiful Rocky outcropping with Summit views. For this reason, I would advise waiting until late May to hike this trail if you would like to go to the peak or possibly bringing some lightweight snowshoes. Either way is totally worth it in the forest is absolutely gorgeous.
The steep incline is a great work out without being too rigorous. I would recommend this trail to anyone, but your fitness level will determine how far you will get! The cool thing about this hike is that there are plenty other beautiful things to see down in the Wildwood recreation center when you are done, including a Fish viewing center, a boardwalk through a beautiful marsh, and open space for a picnic!
I will definitely be going back to the Boulder Ridge Trail!