TRAILHEAD NW Rocky Point Road, 1.5 miles off St. Helens Road
DISTANCE 5 miles round trip
DURATION Two hours and fifteen minutes
ELEVATION A total change of 409 feet, with a low point of 654 feet and a high point of 1063 feet
CONDITIONS This loop follows graveled logging roads and a short distance of clear forest path. Between waypoints 10 and 11 the road is very rocky and somewhat overgrown with alders and occasional blackberries.
FROM DOWNTOWN This hike begins 18.5 miles from West Burnside and Interstate 405. Drive north on Highway 30 (also called St. Helens Road) past Linnton, Burlington, and the Cornelius Pass intersection. About 16 miles from downtown Portland, you will pass a truck weighing station on the right side of the highway. Immediately beyond it look for a sign indicating the junction with NW Rocky Point Road. Turn left and proceed up Rocky Point Road for 1.4 miles until you come to the first (blue) gate on the left. Park here.
The Beaver Ponds Loop winds along logging roads past beaver ponds secluded among remote stands of a maturing forest. After slipping down a hidden trail you will emerge onto a wide vista replete with soaring eagles and mysterious black ravens who watch as you trespass through their forest.
Beyond the gate, walk down the logging road past another set of gate posts and follow the roughly graded road as it crosses a small creek and turns left (0.1 mile), heading east. A short spur road is visible just beyond the bend, but it leads nowhere. The road passes under a set of power lines that will serve as a reference point along the entire route.
A beaver pond secluded in the upper reaches of the Crabapple Creek watershed. Less than one minute after this picture was taken a violent hailstorm coated the pond with ice. Note the upturned tree with a Medusa-like tangle of roots extending upward from the pond’s surface.
About 0.8 mile into the hike the road turns right (southward) and begins to ascend a ridge. Prior to crossing this divide, you will also note another track heading off to the left. This track is relevant to the Runaway Ridge Loop.
At 0.9 mile into the hike you will cross over the ridge at an altitude of 762 feet to descend into the beautiful Crabapple Creek watershed. The road proceeds gently downhill into this remote watershed, eventually passing beneath the power lines you first encountered on the north side of the ridge. Stop for a moment to catch the magnificent view from this vantage point; you can see all the way into Portland. Follow the road down the slope 0.4 mile from the crest to the next intersection.
This intersection presents you with a Y-split in the road. The left-hand fork leads further down into the Crabapple Creek basin and to the base of Runaway Ridge (see the Runaway Ridge Loop). On this hike, however, turn and climb the right-hand fork. Just beyond the junction another spur heads uphill. This road leads to a clear-cut hillside whose summit can easily be reached from Rocky Point Road. Ignore this upper spur and continue along the main logging road another 0.3 mile to the next junction.
At the next intersection the main road appears to turn left and proceed downhill in a southerly direction. You will be returning by this route, but for now proceed straight ahead, climbing the slope in front of you. Starting at an elevation of 725 feet, the road ascends for the next half mile at a 10 percent grade. As you climb you will pass through some remote forests that harbor considerable wildlife, from hawks and deer to rough-skinned newts and grouse.
You will also pass two beaver ponds that are clearly visible from the road. These are technically sag ponds, a common feature in landslide topography, and have been further dammed by the logging road that runs across them. The beavers, however, have made these ponds their own by assiduously blocking the outlets and building their lodges deep in the water. Forest managers patrol these ponds to control beaver activity, which poses a threat to the logging roads.
After the half-mile climb, at an altitude of just over 900 feet, you will arrive at the first beaver pond, now a boggy depression on the uphill side of the road. This was a fairly large pond when it was still occupied by a beaver.
In another 0.1 mile you will pass a spur leading uphill. This one dead-ends in the forest about 100 feet higher in elevation. The road dips here, and 0.2 mile onward you will arrive at another drained beaver pond on the right.
After the second beaver pond the road begins to climb again, emerging into a large clear-cut area 0.1 mile further along.
The road splits here, with the main road leading upward into the clear-cut. This right-hand fork dead-ends at the base of the massive hill you see above you. For the purposes of this hike, opt for the less-traveled left-hand option, which hugs the verge of the forest.
After climbing this last 0.1 mile you will have reached the high point of the hike: 1063 feet in elevation. This spot affords a beautiful view into the valley. You may want to save your lunch to eat on one of the many giant stumps here, each bearing mute testimony to the mighty trees that once covered the ground. You may even spot the eagles nesting in the trees across from you on the other side of the valley.
As you return to the logging road, you will find it winding its way north along a ridgeline on the left-hand edge of the clear-cut you’ve been viewing.
Another 0.1 mile onward you will encounter two spur roads leading down into the clear-cut. They look tempting but are not the quickest way down. Continue to follow the rough, rocky road along the ridgeline.
At the far end of the ridgeline the road angles into the woods, passing through a tangle of alder seedlings that may obscure parts of the trail. Continue into the forest, pushing the alders aside (0.2 mile from the spur roads you just passed) until you emerge into a narrow clearing. As you look to the northern end of this clearing you will see the remains of a large blue tarp lying under the trees. Instead of heading north toward the tarp, turn right so that you are facing southeast. Proceed to the very edge of the wood, and when you peer among the trees you will see a narrow trail heading off from the southeast corner of the clearing. Follow that trail, which will quickly lead to an unmistakable path that passes under the dense trees like a tunnel.
Follow this hidden trail down 0.3 mile. It parallels the clear-cut valley just inside the forested area, steadily dropping altitude until it comes out into a small copse of deciduous trees on somewhat flat ground.
Wend your way through these trees and you’ll suddenly emerge onto another logging road. This is an access road to the lower portion of the clear-cut valley—immediately to the right. Follow this road 500 feet to the left, to where it intersects with the main road (the Cable Trail) that traverses the entire Crabapple Creek basin.
Turn left onto this well-traveled gravel road, which in 0.4 mile returns you to the intersection described at waypoint 4. From here you merely need to retrace your steps along the logging road that was used to enter the basin.
