TRAILHEAD NW Skyline Boulevard between Moreland Road and Johnson Road
DISTANCE 5.4 miles round trip
DURATION Three hours and thirty minutes
ELEVATION A total change of 1000 feet, with a low point of 300 feet and a high point of 1300 feet
CONDITIONS This is the most challenging hike of those I’ve described in the northern Tualatin Mountains. Not only does the elevation change by more than 1000 feet, but the hike includes some steep descents, an extensive (0.4 mile) bushwhack trail, and at least two creek crossings. It is a demanding trail and one I would recommend for a warmer, drier day, since the heavy foliage is likely to soak your pants and boots in wet weather. It may be helpful to wear long pants and bring along rose pruners for the bushwhack trail.
FROM DOWNTOWN This hike begins 17.8 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 13.5 miles from downtown Portland, you will see a sign for Logie Trail on the left. Take this steep, winding road up the mountain to reach NW Skyline Boulevard. Turn right on
Skyline Boulevard and proceed north for 1.3 miles until you reach a sharp elbow curve to the left. On the right is a blue gate heading into a young conifer forest. Park near this gate.
The Double Cross Loop takes you into an almost inaccessible portion of the Crabapple and Patterson creek watersheds. It is the only way to access this remote area on a day hike; alternative routes would require at least 4 miles of hiking to even approach the area. Part of this loop uses the Cable Trail (see the Cable Trail to Rocky Point Road Hike). It is a strenuous hike, but one that takes you deep into the Crabapple Creek basin, along long-abandoned roads, down misty ridgelines with spectacular views, past forests full of wildlife, and across a number of small but active creeks. When I really want to get off the grid, this is one of my favorite hikes. Plus it’s a very good work-out! Take your time and enjoy this spectacular hike as it loops through an area otherwise too remote for day hikers.
The trail splits just beyond the gate. Take the left-hand option, which climbs gradually from an elevation of 1200 feet to 1300 feet, the highest point on the hike, in 0.3 mile. When the road splits again, take the right-hand trail. This trail crests about 100 feet further along, then begins to drop. Look for a side trail leading off to the right about a tenth of a mile past the intersection and just beyond the high point in the trail.
Rough-skinned newts are a common sight for Northwest hikers.
This rutted, overgrown side trail is the Cable Trail, which continues steeply downhill (and which can be slippery in places, so be cautious in rainy weather). This trail levels out at 1070 feet elevation after having dropped 230 feet.
Turning northeast now, the Cable Trail continues for another 0.3 mile through a young forest to the end of the ridge, from where you can get a great view of the Crabapple Creek basin and this trail winding down into the forested bowl. On your way to this point you will notice an old logging cable lying in the grass across the trail.
As you reach the end of the ridge (1068 feet elevation) you will notice another trail spur heading off to the right. While the main trail on the left continues down the slope, the side trail, overgrown with wild grasses, heads northeast to end in a cul-de-sac a short distance further. Choose this right-hand option and proceed 0.1 mile to the dead end.
Standing at the conclusion of the trail you will observe an almost solid wall of trees. Note carefully on the left-hand side a small break in the trees and a path passing neatly between the low-hanging branches. You can recognize the path by the fact that it emerges on the other side of these woods into an area of slightly younger trees. Immediately to the right a wall of taller trees marks the edge of an earlier clear-cut. This bushwhack trail skirts the edge of the older forest as it descends the ridgeline down to an old skidder road (where earthmoving vehicles cut rudimentary tracks into the slope to provide access for loggers and their equipment)—0.2 mile down the slope.
Throughout this thickly wooded section the trail is marked by blue yarn tied at intervals and hanging from trees, stumps, and overhead branches. Cutting through waist-high salal and slipping in and out of young fir trees, the trail descends along a wall of older trees to the right. Keep a close watch for where the branches have been trimmed back and where the Oregon grape, salal, and occasional blackberries have been trimmed. Near the bottom of this steep descent the trail switches back and forth among the trees as it navigates the final drop to the older skidder road at the base of the ridge. The last few feet down are strewn with rocks and fallen branches. Step through these and you will see that you’ve arrived at a ledge that is, in fact, a skidder road leading down and to the right.
This skidder road is recognizable because it forms a ledge of level ground, albeit overgrown with dense conifers. A dark, shaded passage slips between the clipped trees and leads down to the right for 0.2 mile. Follow this sylvan tunnel around the occasional batch of blackberry vines struggling to survive in the conifer gloom. The yarn will continue to guide you. Eventually the road departs from its transverse direction along the hillside and turns to slip down the slope, following a steeper track until it emerges 50 feet later at the very end of a remote logging road. Using this bushwhack route down from the Cable Trail, you’ve now penetrated into the heart of the Crabapple Creek basin. It would take many hours to get to this point following the labyrinthine logging roads, and using this shortcut you’ve done it in less than ninety minutes.
You’re now on a wide, roughly surfaced gravel logging road. Directly ahead is a dead-end spur, but if you follow the road 0.2 mile to the right it will skirt the bottom of a large cliff and drop down to an intersection with another more heavily used road that leads to the golf course (left) and into the Patterson Creek watershed (right). I refer to this as the Upper Golf Course Road; it eventually connects with the Lower Golf Course Road (see also the Cable Trail to Rocky Point Road Hike) near the entrance to the golf course itself.
Turn left once you reach the Upper Golf Course Road and proceed down about 350 feet. There the road splits again, with the main track heading off to the right. Choose the left-hand turn and continue to traverse the slope in a northerly direction for another 0.2 mile.
At this point you will encounter another split in the road. Turn right, heading down the slope. The road begins to turn into a track, with moss and grass replacing the gravel. As the track drops to an elevation of 385 feet it becomes rougher, occasionally blocked by fallen trees, berms, and ditches. Climb over these and in another 0.1 mile you will reach the first major creek crossing.
Before crossing the creek you must surmount a large, overgrown berm. The watercourse itself is in a narrow gorge that cuts through the track, about 4–5 feet below the surrounding terrain. The uphill side of the streambed is narrow enough to jump across, but dogs will have to clamber down and scramble up the far side (and some may require assistance to climb up the opposing bank). On the far side of this first crossing, the trail continues along the old road for 0.3 mile, crossing several smaller berms and easily surmountable smaller watercourses.
The second big crossing is similar to the first. Here, too, an initial berm must be crossed, after which you’re obliged to descend through a thicket of alder seedlings to the edge of the watercourse. This creek is larger than the first and requires descending into the streambed, a 4-foot drop from the lip of the ravine. You and your companions will again need to pull yourselves up the far side. (I don’t recommend doing this during one of Oregon’s infamous downpours.)
Having navigated the second and last crossing of these unnamed tributaries of Patterson Creek, you will be within 500 feet of the intersection of this disused track and the well-maintained road that ascends from the Wildwood Golf Course. I refer to this road as the Lower Golf Course Road. Although the last few yards of the track pass through an area sprouting blackberry bushes, it is relatively free of ensnaring tendrils that might hamper passage. Turn left onto the Lower Golf Course Road and begin to ascend the hill.
The Lower Golf Course Road twists and turns its way upward, eventually traversing a ridge that divides the Crabapple Creek watershed from the watercourses that flow into Patterson Creek. In all, the ascent up this road to its intersection with the Cable Trail covers 0.6 mile. About half a mile up the road you will encounter a spur on the right that leads down the northern slope of the aforementioned ridge and crosses Crabapple Creek 0.3 mile northward.
Turn left at this intersection. You are now on the Cable Trail, which is even more well maintained than the Lower Golf Course Road, with evidence of frequent vehicular travel. Only 200 feet further you will spot a road heading straight up the hill to the right. This spur, also described in the Cable Trail to Rocky Point Road Hike, leads to two excellent viewpoints. The first spot looks across a clear-cut toward Sauvie Island, while the second looks out across the entire area.
As the Cable Trail turns to the left, heading south, you will drop down onto a charming, maple-edged road that runs across a small creek.
At the far end of this lovely stretch, the road begins to climb into a series of S-bends that will elevate you to the base of the higher slopes. In these bends you will encounter two spur trails leading off on the left into the densely replanted conifer forest. Both are dead ends. Remain on the main road, which ascends for 0.3 mile to an open area that often provides glimpses of elk or deer traversing the recently logged slopes above. Upon passing the second spur trail, take a moment to look straight down the corridor. In the distance you will see a forested ridge; it is the same ridge you descended using the rough bushwhack trail.
Proceed onward about half a mile, circling around a thickly replanted forest at the base of the Crabapple Creek basin’s upper slopes until you reach the next spur leading off to the left. At this point the main road turns to the right, and you will begin to climb upward from an elevation of 780 feet. Almost immediately you will encounter another spur road splitting off to the right, but it is clearly a secondary road; ignore it as you begin the long climb to the end of the ridge at an elevation of 1068 feet.
The hike up to the end of the ridge is 0.4 mile long and bends in and out of a narrow ravine. The area around the trail is steep and full of wildlife, including raptors, who like to sit in a tree overlooking the road. Take your time ascending this portion of the trail, as the elevation gain is nearly 300 feet in less than half a mile.
Once you arrive at the top you will have completed the circuit to reach the upper portion of the Cable Trail. At the intersection that marks the end of the ridge, turn right. The left-hand spur is the one you took to descend into the valley.
From here it’s merely a job of retracing your steps along the ridge, up the steep scramble to the top of the hill, around a couple of left-hand turns, and back to the gate on Skyline Boulevard.