Mill Creek Ridge Hike
From Oregon Hikers Field Guide
- Start point: Mill Creek Ridge Trailhead
- End point: Mill Creek Ridge East Boundary
- Hike type: In and out
- Distance: 5.4 miles
- Elevation gain: 1095 feet
- High point: 1504 feet
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Seasons: All year
- Family Friendly: Yes, for older kids
- Backpackable: No
- Crowded: No
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Hike Description
In 2016, the Columbia Land Trust completed acquisition of a property of this grassy ridge between Brown and Mill creeks south of The Dalles. This brought the trust’s property to over 400 acres and connected two previously separate sections of land, while also putting the land off limits to private development. The public is now welcome to hike the oak woods and two-mile ridge crest, which bursts with wildflowers in the spring and offers views to the Columbia River, Mount Adams, Mount Hood, and southwest up Mill Creek in The Dalles Watershed.
Hike up a narrow corridor between private fences, with oak woods to the right and an open pasture to the left. The old road track veers left in a slope forest of Oregon white oak where bachelor buttons, lupine, balsamroot, desert parsley, and yarrow bloom. Then you’ll switchback to the right and keep ascending, getting some views down to the Brown Creek valley and the tableland of Government Flat above it.
You’ll reach a junction at the ridge crest where you can go left or right. Take the trail leading left towards the high point of the hike. Looking back (southwest), you’ll see down to Mill Creek orchards, across to Oak Flat, and the rugged confluence of the North Fork and South Fork of Mill Creek. About three miles up the South Fork is Mill Creek Falls (not visible from here), which is off limits to the public since it’s inside The Dalles Watershed Management Area. Columbia desert parsley, balsamroot, lupine, paintbrush, frasera, and buckwheat bloom on this open grassy crest. You’ll pass the first of several piles of coiled barbed wire from the dismantling of old ranch fences. Soon you’ll get to the highest prominence on the ridge, where views extend northeast to The Dalles Dam and the Columbia Hills from Stacker Butte to Haystack Butte. To the north is Mount Adams, while to the northwest, the communications tower on Wasco Butte is visible. Mount Hood stands to the west, and to the southwest, up the Mill Creek drainage are Flag Point, Eightmile Point, Lookout Mountain, Fivemile Butte, and Perry Point on the skyline.
Descending from this knoll, you’ll reach a saddle. Horned larks inhabit this grassland, and meadowlarks make their nests here. Over the next prominence, the trail reaches a fenceline and proceeds along it. Oaks reach the crest here, and there are some clumps of poison oak as well. Views continue to extend to Mount Adams and the Columbia River. Ponderosa pines shade a parkland below, and bachelor buttons adorn the grassy slope (try to count all the color varieties!). Past a fence corner, you’ll trek up to the summit of another knoll and then descend through a copse of ponderosa pines. At a closed gate, you’ll reach the eastern boundary of Columbia Land Trust property, so turn back here.
Return to the junction, and continue along the crest to explore the three-quarter mile length of trail heading southwest. You’ll get more views of the confluence of the two forks of Mill Creek (the South Fork is entirely within The Dalles Watershed). There are a few ponderosa pines on the ridge here as well as dense oak woods on the north facing slope. Other birds to look for include Lewis’ woodpeckers and bluebirds. Common raptors here are red-tailed hawks and turkey vultures, but you’ll be lucky to spot a golden eagle. Looking west, you’ll see Seward Flat separating the two main forks of Brown Creek. On a clear day, Mount Hood is on the skyline. Lichen-patterned boulders are strewn through the meadows. A short rise takes you up to a No Trespassing sign at an old fence marking the western boundary of Columbia Land Trust property.
Maps
- Maps: Hike Finder
Regulations or restrictions, etc
- Dogs on leash
- Respect private property and No Trespassing signs
- No bicycles permitted
Trip Reports
- Search Trip Reports for Mill Creek Ridge Hike
Related Discussions / Q&A
- Search Trail Q&A for Mill Creek Ridge Hike
Guidebooks that cover this hike
- none
More Links
- Mill Creek Ridge Natural Area (Columbia Land Trust)
- Mill Creek Ridge Milestone (Columbia Land Trust)
- Mill Creek Ridge (The Nature Here TV Show)
- “Lewis’s Woodpecker wins habitat protection in Oregon” (BirdWatching)
- Wildflower Bloom: Mill Creek Ridge (Flora Northwest)
- Mill Creek Ridge Preserve (Northwest Wildflowers)
Contributors
- bobcat (creator)