Hike #5: George Himes Park

Trailhead: George Himes Park (SW Terwilliger and SW Nebraska, between SW Barbur Blvd and SW Capitol Hwy).

What I listened to in the car: This trail head is less than a mile from my house so I just caught the news break between A Prairie Home Companion and The Splendid Table on OPB radio  :)

Companions: Just Tumalo!

 Trails hiked on: Unnamed trails in George Himes Park.

Miles hiked: 0.6 miles (calculated on google maps), in 30 minutes

Unique miles hiked: 0.6 miles

Total challenge miles: 9.3 miles

Weather: Threatening to rain at any moment, but a little blue sky and only a few sprinkles.

Amenities: Picnic tables only.

Notes:

George Himes park is a tiny little pocket park in the very southern tip of the Tualatin Mountains. It is not technically part of Forest Park but I am including it, along with Marquam Nature Park, Council Crest and the Terwilliger Parkway trails, in my challenge. They're more or less contiguous, I hike there a lot and it's my challenge so I get to make up my own rules  ;)

I had a terrible cold this weekend and hardly made it out of the house yesterday. I was feeling a bit better today but still could hardly make it around this trail without losing my breath. This trail is the closest trail to my house and it was not raining so it seemed like a decent choice for this afternoon.

The trail starts on SW Nebraska with a small picnic area. The trail is a loop that goes down into a little canyon and back up with the top part of the loop paralleling the Terwilliger Trail, a well used paved running path that goes the whole length of Terwilliger Blvd from SW Barbur Blvd up to downtown.

At 6/10th of a mile the loop is short but sweet. There is a little bridge over a creek and pretty creek that is quite visible in the winter. From the very bottom of the trail you can take an offshoot trail down that goes under the interstate and down some stairs all the way to Willamette Park. I've never gone down that far, but the view from under the freeway is pretty spectacular.

This park has always felt like a little treasure to me. Today I found a tree that someone had left Christmas ornaments on. A couple years ago I found a beautiful cat skull peeking out from the undergrowth. I wonder what you will find when you go visit.