Washougal Waterfront Hike
From Oregon Hikers Field Guide
- Start point: Washougal Waterfront Trailhead
- End point: Washougal Waterfront East Trailhead and Parkers Landing
- Hike Type: In and out
- Distance: 2.1 miles
- Elevation gain: 35 feet
- High point: 45 feet
- Difficulty: Easy
- Seasons: All year
- Family Friendly: Yes
- Backpackable: No
- Crowded: Yes
Contents |
Hike Description
The Port of Washougal-Camas is currently developing a significant section of waterfront on the Columbia River where the Hambleton Bros Lumber Company once had a mill. There will be a large apartment complex as well as a condo area with restaurants, etc. Along the river, however, is a cement path that takes you under tall rustling cottonwoods and allows you to connect with Steamboat Landing Park for a longer stroll along the Columbia River Dike. A short walk west of the parking area at the Washougal Waterfront Park will take you to Parkers Landing, where you can visit various exhibits on the indigenous and early settler history of the area.
Walk out past the covered picnic area to the railed walkway above the Columbia River. From here, you get an excellent view east to Mount Hood and Larch Mountain. A walkway leads down to the breakwater and dock, which you can follow to its end, with the covered marina on your right. Due west is cottonwood-forested Lady Island.
Back at the park, start heading east past a bald eagle sculpture to a large star circle embedded in the walk above an inlet. The path takes you past the kayak launch ramp next to the inlet. Currently (2022) the land between the path and Highway 14 is undeveloped, but there are big plans for a dense new development. A short spur right leads to a bench. Then you’ll continue east under lampposts and cottonwoods. Across the river in Oregon are the Sandy River Delta, Broughton Bluff, and Chamberlain Hill. Above the nature play area, a sign informs about the 19th century landscape painter, Paul Kane. In the playground, there are drums, a xylophone, and a large (female?) Sasquatch named Eegah employing some hefty ropes to drag a genuine glacial erratic (whose name is Erric). Some Bigfoot tracks in the path are placed alongside a guide to the tracks of more common critters.
Continue walking under the rustling cottonwoods. A short trail leads into the riparian thicket. Construction continues on a large apartment complex to the left. Soon you’ll come to the end of the trail at a small parking area on A Street. From here, you can walk east 0.7 miles via a sidewalk to reach Steamboat Landing Park, where you connect with Captain William Clark Park at Cottonwood Beach and the dike that leads into the Steigerwald National Wildlife Refuge (see the Columbia River Dike Hike).
Return to the parking area, and follow 2nd Street back a block to turn left on A Street in front of the Best Western hotel. Walk a block, and turn left down 1st Street, and then make a right below the Port of Camas-Washougal office building. You’ll cross a boat ramp and reach the grassy expanse at Parkers Landing Historical Park, where you’ll get great views to Mount Hood. There are memorials here to Vietnam veterans and the local victims of Agent Orange. Inland from this lawn, you can enter Rose Arbor Park, and pass an apple orchard and walnut trees. The park is on the site of Parkersville, founded in 1850 by settler David C. Parker, the first American town north of the Columbia River. A covered kiosk displays several panels on the history of the area, beginning with the practices of the WaScully band of the Chinook. Near the kiosk is Chinook Plaza, with “power figure” sculpture and interpretive panels discussing archeological finds and native use of plants. On the east side of the park is little Van Vleet Historical Plaza, honoring a prominent local family and Louisa Van Vleet, one of the first woman doctors in the Washington Territory.
Maps
- Maps: Hike Finder
Fees, Regulations, etc.
- Parks open sunrise to midnight
- Restrooms, play area, picnic tables, interpretive signs
- Dogs on leash
Trip Reports
- Search Trip Reports for Washougal Waterfront Hike
Related Discussions / Q&A
- Search Trail Q&A for Washougal Waterfront Hike
Guidebooks that cover this hike
- Urban Trails: Vancouver by Craig Romano
More Links
- Our Parks & Trails (Port of Camas-Washougal)
- Washougal Waterfront Park Trail-Columbia River Connector Trail (Washington Trails Association)
- Washougal Waterfront Park & Trail (Visit Washougal)
- The Washougal Waterfront: Walking, History and Sasquatch (Clark County Talk)
- Washougal Waterfront Park & Parkers Landing (Jim’s Trails)
- The Waterfront at Parker’s Landing (Port of Camas-Washougal)
- A Sasquatch Named Eegah and a Erratic Boulder Named Erric for Washougal Natural Play Area (GreenWorks)
- “Washougal park unveils new natural play area” (The Columbian)
- Parker’s Landing (City of Washougal)
- Parkersville National Historic Site (Clark County)
- “Parkersville and Parker’s Landing, Washougal, Washington” (The Columbia River: A Photographic Journey)
Contributors
- bobcat (creator)