Elk Rock Island Hike
From Oregon Hikers Field Guide
- Start point: Spring Park Trailhead
- End point: Elk Rock Island
- Hike type: Lollipop loop
- Distance: 1.3 miles
- Elevation gain: 130 feet
- High point: 60 feet
- Difficulty: Easy
- Seasons: Spring through Fall, except in times of high water
- Family Friendly: Yes
- Backpackable: No
- Crowded: No
- Spring Park Accessibility Information (Access Recreation)
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Contents |
Description
The oldest place in the Portland area is not a mansion on Nob Hill, nor even the small Boring volcanoes, such as Mount Tabor, that dominate Southeast Portland - it is an island (only at high water) in the Willamette River, the 40-million-year-old exposed volcano of Elk Rock Island (also known as the Waverley Basalt). The island is reached via the Spring Park Natural Area in Milwaukie, which leads to a crossing of a rocky channel which is left entirely or partially dry for most of the year. Here, native oaks and madrones crown a forested remnant donated to the City of Portland by businessman Peter Kerr in 1940, and officially known as Peter Kerr Park. Before Kerr's donation, the island, part of the original land claim of Milwaukie founder Lot Whitcomb, had been a riverside playground with a dance hall and other attractions. In April 2016, Portland formally transferred Elk Rock Island to the City of Milwaukie. Scabland vegetation has reasserted itself, with vernal pools rimmed by wildflowers and views west to the cliff of Elk Rock itself, once reputedly a Native American hunting site where elk were herded over the precipice to their deaths as in a buffalo jump.
Walk past the play area in Spring Park. A large deodar cedar stands in the corner of this small space. A paved path heads through this area before dropping on a log-lined sandy universal access trail, eight feet wide, to a cottonwood, willow, and alder bottomland. The trail then crosses a footbridge in a sedge-filled depression and rises up a bank supporting a few Douglas-firs. There may be a bald eagle couple nesting in this area, so look for them up in the cottonwoods. There's a viewing area here overlooking a backwater: this is as far as wheelchairs can go. A path takes you down to the rocky shoreline of the Willamette River. A natural rock causeway leads out to Elk Rock Island.
Reach the open rocky area on the south end of the island. Canada geese often congregate here. Pacific madrones lean over the island's ramparts - the island being the remnants of an ancient volcano now situated in the currents of a major river. Rounding the rocky point, the steep cliffs of Elk Rock and Bishop’s Close (to the right) loom, with a substantial waterfall pouring down in the rainy season. Pools of water dot this open area on Elk Rock Island. Heading to the west side of the island, reach a small willow-lined bay and beach. Near here, there used to be a dance hall operated by the Elk Rock Island Club (it burned down in 1916). Take a trail that turns into the woods, and then hike along the edge of the woodland under cottonwoods and alders. There’s a rock outcrop at the northwest end of the island, with a remnant set of steps, which invites a scramble. Coming back, head up a to a trail which winds along the top of the cliff at the north end of the island. Here a thicket of snowberry is shaded by oaks - there is also plenty of poison oak here. One branch of this trail drops steeply down to another cove and beach, but it may suffice to make a loop back to the west side of the island, and then turn into the hinterland in a small gully under Douglas-firs, big-leaf maples and cottonwoods. The trail cuts right into the interior and reaches a clearing with a multi-limbed maple and historic evidence of beer fests. From here, the trail winds through snowberry, Indian plum, and elderberry thickets. The island has been well-cleared of ivy in recent years but both ivy and blackberry are making a return. The trail heads around to the south end of the island along the rim of its eastern cliff and drops down the rock face to the causeway of volcanic rock. From this point, return to Spring Park.
Fees, Regulations, etc.
- Dogs on leash
- Beware of poison oak in the interior of the island
Maps
Trip Reports
- Search Trip Reports for Elk Rock Island Hike
Related Discussions / Q&A
- Search Trail Q&A for Elk Rock Island Hike
Guidebooks that cover this hike
- Discovering Portland Parks by Owen Wozniak
- Peaceful Places: Portland by Paul Gerald
- Walking Portland by Becky Ohlsen
- Wild in the City: Exploring the Intertwine by Michael C. Houck & M.J. Cody
- Nature Walks In and Around Portland by Karen & Terry Whitehill
- The Willamette River Field Guide by Travis Williams
More Links
- Spring Park (North Clackamas Parks & Recreation District)
- Spring Park (Access Trails)
- Spring Park Natural Area (The Intertwine)
- Elk Rock Island (City of Milwaukie)
- Elk Rock Island (The Intertwine)
- Elk Rock Island (Peaceful Places in Portland)
- Elk Rock Island (Things to Do in Portland With Children)
- Elk Rock Island expedition (Cyclotram)
- Elk Rock Island Returns Home to Milwaukie (City of Milwaukie)
- Elk Rock Island Natural Area Management Plan (Portland Parks & Recreation)
- A few facts about Elk Rock Island (Rich Morgan)
- Elk Rock Island (Milwaukie Museum)
- "Disastrous Blaze Visits Rock Island" (Milwaukie Historical Society)
Page Contributors
- bobcat (creator)