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Scouters Mountain Nature Park -- May 7, 2020

Posted: May 9th, 2020, 10:01 am
by datura
Another day, another Boring walk...

scouters mountain 1 may 2020.jpg


Scouters Mountain Nature Park is a nature park in the middle of fast-growing subdivisions in the Happy Valley area. As with the nearby Hidden Falls Nature Park, active construction of new houses is occurring right up to the boundaries of the park.


The park and its paths are described in these links:

https://ncprd.com/parks/scouters-mountain-nature-park

https://www.oregonmetro.gov/parks/scout ... ature-park

https://www.oregonhikers.org/field_guid ... _Loop_Hike


The geologic map I found said that this is covered with the Basalt of Mt. Scott, part of the Boring Volcanic Field. Apparently Mt. Scott is a shield volcano, though I've seen some references to it being a cinder cone in spite of it being kind of large for a cinder cone. One of the trails on Scouters Mountain refers to a lava dome, though I don't know if Scouters Mountain fits the technical definition of a lava dome. Maybe a vent from the Mt. Scott eruption sequence was nearby? Anyway, there isn't a lot of exposed sub-surficial geology here except for a few spots along the road and trail, so it's kind of irrelevant.

(And the description here on Oregon Hikers says there are two vents on Scouters Mountain, so again I have no idea what I'm talking about. Live and learn, right? https://www.oregonhikers.org/field_guid ... s_Mountain, which references this CVO map that shows 2 "probable" vents at the "scout camp": https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/observatorie ... ield.shtml)


scouters mountain 2 may 2020.jpg


The hike is another small walk, maybe a mile to a mile and a half, with maybe 200 feet of elevation gain, nothing too steep. It's mostly in a pleasant urban second-growth forest. A few larger trees and stumps can be seen here and there. There are views of Mt. Hood from the trail that loops around the picnic area at the top of the mountain/hill, and a glimpse of Mt. St. Helens on the path between the picnic area and the upper-level parking lot.


scouters mountain 4 may 2020.jpg


One of the fun things about this hike is that there are some art installations scattered along the trail, mostly on benches. They're adorable.

scouters mountain 3 may 2020.jpg

This walk was rather a contrast to the previous day's walk at Summerlake Park! No lakes with ducks, no wide paved trail next to grassy swards, no dogs or baby strollers, and not much in the way of crowds. There was a blooming rhododendron bush, though, next to the picnic shelter. I assume it's from the former boy scout camp that used to be here.

Although the park is in an area with subdivisions, it didn't feel nearly as urban as some of the other metro parks I've visited lately. It's no wilderness experience, but it's a pleasant place for a quick walk or for a picnic on a sunny lawn (at the picnic area). It also has several wonderful spots if you want to take a semi-posed outdoorsy photo of, say, your kids.