A Wandering Surprise in Portland

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Earlier in the month I flew out to Portland, Oregon to visit my daughter’s family. If you have followed this blog or have read The Gentle Art of Wandering, you know that Portland is a great place to wander. In fact, the book’s cover photo was taken on Portland’s 4T Trail.

While in Portland, my daughter, grandson, and I happened to walk the 4T Trail again. And again the combination of trail, tram, trolley, and train was a great way to spend the better part of the day. We even topped off the hike by having lunch at one of Portland’s many ubiquitous food carts. As an added bonus, our trip was delayed a bit by a protest march streaming through downtown Portland.

You can find a food cart for everything cuisine imaginable. It's like going through a cafeteria with several choices except that you're outside. You can find them all over Portland.

You can find a food cart for everything cuisine imaginable. It’s like going through a cafeteria with several choices except that you’re outside. You can find food carts all over Portland.

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And here’s the end of the protest march.

This blog post, however, is not about the 4T Trail. It is about a walk I took the next morning before everyone else was up and ready. I had no destination in mind and really just wanted to stretch out my back and loosen up my body.

But soon after stepping out the door, my wandering instincts kicked in when I noticed a “Roadway Not Improved” sign and started following the unpaved road. They are perfect places to begin a wandering adventure and southeast Portland, where my daughter lives, has plenty of unpaved roads.

Portland's unpaved streets range from dirt roads to footpaths to gardens. All are worth following.

Portland’s unpaved streets range from dirt roads to footpaths to gardens. All are worth following.

With a few twists and turns, the unpaved road ended at a busier street. Across the street was a “Dead End” sign. And again, if you have read any of the stair climbing posts in this blog, you know that a “Dead End” sign really means “keep walking” for those on foot.

When you’re new to a particular area, you never know what you’ll find at the end of the “dead end” street. It really may come to an end and force you to bounce out of there like a pin ball if you want to continue your walk. But sometimes you’ll find a passage that begs you to keep going ahead.

It may only be a short cut to the next street, but sometimes it may be an opening to a new adventure or opportunity. Where I live in Albuquerque, it might be an acequia ditch that you could follow for miles; in Los Angeles, it could be a public stairway leading to another neighborhood; and in some parts of Portland, it could be a stairway; but in this case, it was a path.

A surprise waits at the end of this "Dead End" street. I came back later in the day with my grandson, Jake, to get some pictures.

A surprise waits at the end of this “Dead End” street. I came back later in the day with my grandson, Jake, to get some pictures.

Here's what's at the end of the street.

Here’s what’s at the end of the street.

This path was way more than a short cut to the next street. It plunged into the woods and dropped down into a broad gulch full of trees, wetlands, and animals. It was truly a natural area hiding inside a crease in the middle of a large city, only few hundred feet from a busy neighborhood commercial district.

This is by no means a public stairway. But the path did have some steps to get into the gulch.

This is by no means a public stairway. But the path did have some steps to get into the gulch.

in addition to the trail and trees there was a pond with a green cover of duck weed.

in addition to the trail and trees there was a pond with a green cover of duckweed.

The wetlands also had a small stream. According to a small sign, the stream is where eels lay their eggs.

There was a small stream coming out of the duck pond which, according to a nearby sign, is where eels migrate to lay their eggs.

As you can see by the tree trunk, the wetlands are also home to beaver.

As you can see by this tree trunk, the wetlands are also home to beaver.

After the stream leaves the wetlands it flows to the Willamette River.

The stream quickly runs into another pond that was probably created by Beavers. The stream eventually flows to the Willamette River.

A pond covered in duckweed wouldn't be complete without ducks.

A pond covered in duckweed wouldn’t be complete without ducks.

Who would have imagined that you could find a natural area as wonderful as this in the middle of town. If you were walking or driving along a nearby road, you would never suspect all that was waiting for you only a long fly ball away. There were no signs saying, “To the Natural Area.” There was only a sign saying, “Dead End.” You can only find a special place like this by straying from the pavement and following your instincts.

It turns out that this area happens to be on the backside of Reed College and is called Reed Canyon. Because the land is inaccessible to development, it should remain a natural area for the people of southeast Portland to enjoy for years to come.

I eventually followed another footpath that led me to a different Portland street. On my way circling back to my daughter’s home, I spotted many other things to keep the walk amazing. I even came across another dead end street. It, too, had a path at the end. Needless to say, I followed that path too. Here is some of what I saw on the way back.

This path led me out of Reed Canyon to another Portland street.

This is the path that led me out of Reed Canyon.

I thought these Frank Lloyd Wright style light fixtures were interesting.

I thought these Frank Lloyd Wright style light fixtures were interesting.

When you allow yourself to see, you'll start spotting little details such as this small sign identifying this as a City of Portland Heritage Tree.

When you allow yourself to see, you’ll start spotting little details such as this small sign identifying this as a City of Portland Heritage Tree.

Even better, you might spot a poem posted on sign board in front of a house.

Even better, you might spot a poem posted on sign board in front of a house.

I hope you agree that even a little spontaneous walk to loosen yourself up in the morning before everyone else gets up can be amazing. An adventure might be right outside your front door. The only thing you need to do is to let yourself see what is already there.

4 Comments

  1. I just got back from a walk with my husband in the Reed Canyon. I was trying to identify some plants with huge leaves on the web when I came across your post. Glad you got to visit this location. We are very lucky because our rental is just one block from the path where you exited the canyon. It truly is a magical location and it changes so much through the seasons. It can look like a completely different location. We have seen the beavers, herons, and of course all the ducks and geese each time we walk there. The few benches, picnic tables, and even a chess board on a tree stump make you want to stay even longer. We’re enjoying it as long as we can because we are planning a move to Washington where we’ll have our own walking path on 2+ acres of wooded land, a ravine and the Washougal River. Enjoy your wandering adventures!

  2. Oh the memories of Oregon, I once lived in the Ashland-Medford area and miss it always. Looking at the pictures I could imagine the wonderful fresh smell of the air and the feel of walking through the forest. My son-in-law knew just where to go to find these little tiny flowers that grow under the trees in the Cottage Grove area, I think he called them, Lady Slippers. Wonderful memories. I would be there now if it was possible to live in the dampness again.

  3. Hi David….

    I forwarded this blog to my daughter in Portland. I think she will enjoy it very much. As always, I did! I’ll ask her about the 4T trail, which sounds like something we would both want to do!
    I leave tomorrow for Ghost Ranch – back on January 21st. See you then!
    Happy New Year!

  4. Terrific photos..great “wandering”. Leaves many memories of how fortunate that

    some of us can discover and enjoy what others may consider too “simple” while they pass by through life in a BIG HURRY. Thankyou for keeping me posted. Gennaro

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