Find the top rated walking trails in Portland, whether you're looking for an easy short walking trail or a long walking trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a walking trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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Some of the complaints about the trail from earlier in the year seem to have been resolved. There are new approaches to some of the bridges and attempts made to partially fill the worst of the cracking in the pavement. Bumps and dips are well-marked, so often avoidable if you're paying attention. So thanks to whoever is doing this good work! A tree across the path on our way to Vernonia was - surprisingly - completely cleared by the time we biked back, so someone is paying attention! Great ride!
Beautiful Day, beautiful trail. The second section now goes 1.5 miles past the Viento Creek campground and ranger station.
Since the city cleaned up following Covid, this a really lovely and quiet trail. Please visit and use it to keep it beautiful and clean!
this is a safe and vital crossing dedicated for pedestrians and bicyclists underneath the busy congested car lanes
If you're traveling from Beaverton to Portland, this is the best way to do it if you're on a bike. After the bike path ends, you can take a short side road to the Oregon Zoo.
This is an easy paved path with both up hills and down hills, some straight stretches, some curvy parts as it follow some large power lines in a north-south swath through the neighborhoods. There's one section where you have to get off the trail and go about a quarter mile through traffic and a busy intersection to connect and continue the trail on the other side of Highway 26 (Sunset) so if you have small kids with you, consider only doing the north half or the south half. There are several street crossings and many parks and connecting trails to other destinations.
We walk and bike this trail often. Made a 15 mile loop by riding the trail and then riding around Lake Sacajawea. You see ducks, turtles, herons, and nutrias.
I love that this trail is here and I ride it often, but the section between Manning and Buxton is becoming unpleasant to ride because of neglected upkeep. As has been noted in other reviews, the bridge transitions are dangerous if you are unaware and hit them at speed (which is likely on the steep downhill run below Buxton). Also in that area, tree roots have pushed the asphalt into ridges big enough to unseat you or to bounce your chain off. Many of these are hard to see in shady areas. There’s a section just above the Manning trailhead where the asphalt has been torn up and heavily grooved for years. I recently met a rider in that area pushing his bike back to the Manning car park with a shredded road tire. I am sure money is tight. Although I want to see new trails built, I would not want it to result in neglecting to maintain this regional gem of a trail, particularly the heavily used lower half of it.
We moved from Bellevue (Omaha) Nebraska 3 years ago and we loved riding our bikes on the Papio Creek 20+ mile trail. However this ride is one for the “record books”. It’s got to be one of the most scenic rides in America and worth the one-hour drive from our home north of Vancouver Washington. This is a “must be there” ride!
This really could be a spectacular trail.... :-(
Unfortunately, there is a section of trail between Banks and Buxton that goes through some hay fields that has been desperately overdue for repairs for years now. We ride the entirety of this trail every summer, so we are very familiar with the state of the trail from one year to the next. The transitions from trail to bridges are horribly jarring, and that one section I mentioned above has large sections of crumbling asphalt that can be downright dangerous for those of us riding road bikes with narrower tires. You simply cannot enjoy the ride through this section, as you're constantly trying to stay upright as you navigate the vast sections of potholes.
I have tried complaining to the staff at Stub Stewart, but no one seems to have answers when pressed for repair timelines. Worse, I've experienced them "passing the buck" by bemoaning the multi-jurisdictional nature of trail ownership and maintenance. At this point, they need to stop pointing fingers and just figure out how to make these desperately needed repairs to the trail!
It's paved, it's short but sweet, keep in mind that the railroad IS active (not super active, I didn't see any trains on my particular trip), so use caution at crossings. It's within Battle Ground State Park. I went on a fall day and was tickled (and slightly saddened) to see a bunch of uneaten apples that had fallen off the trees in the area; hopefully some of the local wildlife got some tasty snacks out of them.
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