Doane Creek Loop Hike

Overview

Doane Creek drains the central part of Portland’s Forest Park, with several branches carving deep gullies into the wooded slopes. It reaches the Northwest Industrial Area near the Burlington Northern Railroad Bridge 5.1, where it is controlled through underground culverts. The creek used to drain into the wetland of Doane Lake, of which only two remnant ponds exist today. The loop described here uses both the Wildwood Trail and Leif Erikson Drive, with short connector trails between the two. It’s a quiet part of the park with just the right distance from the busy trailheads at Germantown Road to the north and NW 53rd to the south. Invasive species such as ivy, English laurel, and holly are not as prevalent on these slopes. The biggest part of the elevation gain is the hike up Firelane 5 back to the trailhead but, for its nine miles, this is a relatively gentle hike. A shorter option from the Upper Salzman Road Trailhead is the Salzman Road-Wildwood Trail-Firelane 5 loop at 3 ½ miles. Apart from the actual road beds of Firelane 5 and Salzman Road, the trailhead is surrounded by private property. Walk past the gate on the right, Salzman Road. For some distance as you hike under a leafy Douglas-fir/maple canopy, you’ll be noting No Trespassing signs on both sides of the road. After crossing two gullies, you’ll enter Forest Park. Reach the Wildwood Trail-Salzman Road Junction, and make a right. Hike up a slope in secondary growth Douglas-fir, and follow a contour. In spring, the woods are blooming with violet, trillium, fairy bells, fringe cup, vanilla leaf, and waterleaf. Sword fern and salal also form part of the carpet. When you reach the Wildwood-Cleator Trail Junction, head down the Cleator Trail, descending steeply at first. The trail can be muddy in a clearing infested with invasive Scots broom. Reach the Leif Erikson Drive-Cleator Trail Junction, and go left. Pass Milepost 5 ½ as Leif Erikson Drive, once the central artery of a proposed development, rises gradually under Douglas-fir, western hemlock,

Trail Stats

Photos

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