The East Pond at Whitaker Ponds Nature Park (bobcat)

The "Ribbon of Agua," Whitaker Ponds Nature Park (bobcat)

The West Pond at Whitaker Ponds Nature Park (bobcat)

Nodding beggar ticks (Bidens cernua), Whitaker Ponds Nature Park (bobcat)

The loop around the West Pond (not a GPS track) (bobcat) Courtesy: Google Maps

• Start point: Whitaker Ponds Trailhead
• End point: East Pond
• Trail Log:
• Hike Type: Loop
• Distance: 0.5 miles
• Elevation gain: 10 feet
• High Point: 15 feet
• Difficulty: Easy
• Seasons: All
• Family Friendly: Yes
• Backpackable: No
• Crowded: No

Hike Description

Whitaker Ponds Nature Park, which borders a branch of the Columbia Slough, is a relatively recent addition to Portland Parks’ register of refuges. The 25-acre site was purchased in the 1990s. It was a junkyard that required years of volunteer effort to clean up; the task included removing hundreds of old tires. Now it is a peaceful haven in industrial Northeast Portland.

Some weeping willows greet the visitor at the entrance. Walk straight ahead to a junction. Go left under towering locust trees and a black walnut for the clockwise excursion. To your right, you will see the West Pond. There’s a view of Whitaker Slough, with its canoe launch site, and some steps down to a platform on the lake. The trail crosses a bridge and passes the remains of an old building now beautified by a 2012 painting project. Under cottonwoods, cedars, and Douglas-firs, the path skirts the West Pond and arrives at a baseball field. You head along a gravel road between the East and West Ponds and see Whitaker Middle School up on the rise. The path veers right along a fenceline and passes through a dense thicket of snowberry, willow, big-leaf maple, cottonwood, ash, cedar, and Douglas-fir. Back at the West Pond, there’s a gazebo with picnic tables and a boardwalk down to the water. Interpretive signs in this area tell about Lewis and Clark and the formation of the park.

For birdwatching, the park is best visited in the early morning or evening. Best seasons are mid-fall through spring.

Fees, Regulations, etc.

• Dogs not permitted in the park
• Open dawn to dusk

Maps

• Maps: Hike Finder
• Whitaker Ponds Nature Park Map (Columbia Slough Watershed Council)
• Northeast Portland Bike/Walk Map (Portland Bureau of Transportation)

Trip Reports

• Search Trip Reports for Whitaker Ponds Loop Hike

Related Discussions / Q&A

• Search Trail Q&A for Whitaker Ponds Loop Hike

Guidebooks that cover this hike

• Wild in the City: Exploring the Intertwine by Michael C. Houck and M.J. Cody (editors)
• Peaceful Places: Portland by Paul Gerald

More Links

• Whitaker Ponds Nature Park (Portland Parks)

• Whitaker Ponds Nature Park (Danger Garden)

• Canoeing at Whitaker Ponds Nature Park (Exploring Portland’s Natural Areas)

• Whitaker Ponds Nature Park (Tanya Carriker Photography)

Contributors

• bobcat (creator)