3 min
Overview
NOTICE: Trails in this area were affected by the 2021 Middle Fork Complex Fires. Please check current closures in the Willamette National Forest before planning an outing. The trees on this short little loop above the North Fork Middle Fork Willamette River aren’t behemoths, but many of them may be over 230 years old. What is distinctive about this leg-stretching walk is that each of the conifers has a label honoring individually the 39 signatories (and their states) to an agreement on a new system of government replacing the Articles of Confederation. The proposed Constitution of the United States was signed on September 17th, 1787, by the majority of delegates to the four-month-long Constitutional Convention, held in Philadelphia. The Willamette National Forest’s Constitution Grove of old-growth conifers was dedicated in 1987, on the 200th anniversary of the signing. At the trailhead, there’s a plaque explaining the historic event and dedication of the grove. The first tree with a plaque honors George Washington, who was elected President of the Philadelphia Convention. As you walk around to your right, you’ll see more names on trees, some of them hemlocks and western red-cedars. Luminaries such as Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin, James Wilson, John Rutledge, and James Madison are all represented. At the junction with the North Fork Trail, which runs in several lengthy sections above the river, go right for a short distance to get a view down into the gorge of the North Fork Middle Fork Willamette River. Then turn around, and hike along the North Fork Trail until you see the Constitution Trail branching off to the left to complete its loop. Rhododendron, Oregon grape, vanilla leaf, and foam flower grow in the lush understory. The last plaque on a tree honors William Jackson, the secretary of the Convention.
Trail Stats
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15 m
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Photos
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