TRAILHEAD NW Skyline Boulevard and Fire Lane 15
DISTANCE 2.8 miles round trip
DURATION Two hours
ELEVATION A total change of 250 feet, with a low point of 750 feet and a high point of 1000 feet
CONDITIONS Fire Lane 15, Fire Lane 12, and the BPA Road are well graveled, but the Wildwood Trail is pretty muddy along this stretch.
FROM DOWNTOWN This hike begins 10.5 miles from West Burnside and Interstate 405. Driving north on Highway 30 (also called St. Helens Road), continue past NW Saltzman Road and beneath the St. Johns Bridge. Turn left at the traffic light immediately after the bridge. This puts you on NW Bridge Avenue (the access road to the bridge). Take the first right, onto NW Germantown Road. Drive up Germantown Road to NW Skyline Boulevard. Turn right on Skyline Boulevard and proceed northward for 1.6 miles, passing under the BPA high-power electric lines, until you come to an open area with modern housing developments on both sides of the road. On the right you will see a trail starting behind a barrier. Overhead another set of power lines marches down the Miller Creek valley. Park near the entrance on the right side of the road.
Winding its way along the extreme northern edge of Forest Park, this hike includes nice open vistas on both Fire Lane 15 and the BPA Road. The section of the Wildwood Trail on this loop features nice footbridges in a thick, middle-aged mixed-conifer forest.
Beyond the gate the well-maintained Fire Lane 15 skirts the southern edge of the power-line clear-cut, dipping in and out of the side ravines. Starting at Skyline Boulevard at an altitude of approximately 900 feet, the trail dips to 800 feet before rising to nearly 1000 feet at the promontory, about half a mile from the gate.
This point affords a great view north toward Sauvie Island, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Rainier. To the east you’ll see another ridge across which power lines are slung like giant clotheslines. This is actually the promontory at the end of the BPA Road, a popular destination because of its spectacular view of the Columbia River and Sauvie Island.
The hike now takes you southward. Turning to the right, head back into the forest and past another forest gate.
Honey mushroom (Armillaria mellea)
Immediately after the gate you will encounter a spur track that heads upward to the right. This short woodland lane leads to the Kielhorn Meadow, which was purchased and donated by the Friends of Forest Park in the 1980s to preserve this precious woodland glade. It is a lovely spot for a secluded picnic. Conveniently enough, it can also be accessed from Skyline Boulevard just to the south of where you parked. However, on this hike you will continue downhill along the main track.
As you proceed past the Kielhorn Meadow’s spur, the trail begins to drop down, and 0.4 mile beyond the gate you just passed you will arrive at the intersection with the Wildwood Trail. In all you’ve covered a mile since beginning the hike.
Continue down Fire Lane 15, which drops to the bottom of the ravine (750 feet elevation) in 0.3 mile. This is a steep route and best done walking downhill. At the bottom, Fire Lane 15 drops to the back of a narrow ravine before crossing a small stream and then heading north for a short distance to intersect with Fire Lane 12.
You’ve now walked the full length of Fire Lane 15: 1.35 miles. From here you will ascend Fire Lane 12 for half a mile to the BPA Road, which runs the length of the next ridge—about 100 feet in elevation above your current position. The lower portion of this ascent is steep, so pace yourself.
Half a mile later and a hundred feet higher you emerge from the forest into a clear-cut corridor that runs along the full length of the BPA power-line ridge. This promontory and the road leading up to it afford great views if the weather gods should smile upon you and provide sunshine and clear vistas. It has attracted growing numbers of walkers as the population in Portland has increased. It remains among my favorite haunts, but these days I try to access it via more remote trails so as to avoid most of the foot traffic. Aside from this hike, both the Fire Lane 12 Loop and the Newton Road Loop use the BPA Road for part of the journey.
At the junction of Fire Lane 12 and the BPA Road turn right, toward the intersection with the Wildwood Trail, 0.3 mile ahead. Behind you the BPA Road curves northward until it crests the promontory, upon which the massive high-tension power pylons stand, and from which point you can enjoy a spectacular view to the north. If you’re inclined and time permits, it’s worth the forty-five-minute detour to the promontory and back.
At the intersection of the BPA Road and the northbound portion of the Wildwood Trail (you will already have passed the southbound junction) turn right onto the trail and proceed to the west. Most of this portion of the Wildwood traverses a middle-aged mixed-conifer forest consisting of thicker stands of hemlock, cedar, and Douglas fir, and some thinner stands of alder. The Wildwood Trail can get pretty muddy along this 0.9-mile stretch to where it intersects with Fire Lane 15, and it does experience moderate traffic (mostly from people accessing the trail via Newberry Road). But the trail also features some lovely footbridges as it winds in and out of the various draws.
After you return to the intersection of the Wildwood Trail and Fire Lane 15, proceed steeply uphill, climbing to 100 feet in elevation in the next quarter mile. After this point the fire lane levels off to a more gradual climb, past the Kielhorn Meadow (above the trail) and back to the viewpoint.
Another half mile along the power-line clear-cut brings you back to Skyline Boulevard.