Fall is my favorite time of the year. The air is brisk, the leaves are vibrant, and the weather is changing. It’s a beautiful time to be in Forest Park.
But, with all that beauty comes the need to work on the trails.
As we all know, fall is the time when the leaves starting dropping. And when they do, many land on the trail, causing problems. Each leaf acts like a sponge, holding water on the trail, which soon becomes a muddy spot. When hikers and runners go around these muddy spots, they trample sensitive trail side vegetation, effectively widening the trail and causing more erosion. The leaves also clog culverts, so water rushes over the top of the trail which erodes the trail surface.
Here at FPC, we work to keep all 47 miles of soft – surface trails safe and environmentally sound. Raking the trails is our first line of defense. Raking prevents problems such as trail washouts. We think of raking as preventative medicine.
To rake all 47 miles of trails we need your help!
Please join us at our annual Rake-A-Thon on Saturday, November 19th from 9am – Noon. This is a fun, family-friendly work party where we hope to rake at least 10 miles of trail in one day. Not only will you help us keep the trails in great shape and help the environment, but you’ll also get a great workout!
You can make a huge impact just by spending a few hours in the park raking with us.
Click here to learn more and to sign up.
In addition to raking, Forest Park Conservancy has partnered with our friends at Prometheus Real Estate Group to host a coat drive benefiting One Warm Coat . All new and gently used coats collected will stay right here in our Portland community to help keep folks a little warmer this holiday season. If you have a coat you’d like to donate, please bring it with you to Rake-A-Thon!