After joining PGE’s Project Zero and beginning my remote internship with the Forest Park Conservancy, l wanted to see Forest Park and get a taste of this place I’d heard and read so much about during the course of my internship so far. However, I live out in Damascus, Oregon, and don’t have a driver’s license or car which complicates the matters. So, I enlisted some of my brothers, who have gone a little stir crazy from being trapped inside for the better part of a year, and we decided to tackle a massive undertaking for some boys from rural Oregon: we were going to figure out how a bus system works. This would be a bit more of an undertaking than any of us had done before. Just the trip there would take almost three hours and a number of transfers.
Using our map apps, we saw a bus stop a couple of minutes walk away. So on a warm Monday morning, my brothers and I headed out to the nearby stop for the first bus. In total, we took two busses and one MAX rail trip, the combination of which took us a short walk to an entrance to the Lower Macleay Trailhead.
By the time we had made it to the park, it had been about three hours of travel time and I’d be lying if I said the long trip hadn’t tired us out a little bit. Thankfully, we’d had the foresight to make sure we were stocked up on Gatorade, water, and granola bars to keep ourselves fueled before setting off on the trail. On our walk, we went on the Lower Macleay Trail along Balch Creek up to where it transitions into the Wildwood Trail at the Stone House.
I personally really appreciated this chance to get back into nature. The pandemic had really limited my chances to go out into nature as often. This was really my first chance to really get back into a forest and take a walk since March of last year.
We took our time making our way along the creek, making sure to stop whenever we saw something potentially interesting. Although, my youngest brother Mitch disagreed about how cool the fern was that our brother Jaie and I saw and didn’t recognize (my plant guidebook identified it as a maidenhair fern). It was a nice, relaxing experience to be in nature again, getting away from my desk and getting to do so with family was a nice bonus. I must admit that by the time we had come back from the trail my feet were incredibly sore, but it was worth it.
Hopefully, my experience can help some of you a little bit to point out potential pitfalls and travel tips if you’re interested in visiting the park for the first time, and by public transit as well.
- Know Your Route: Since my siblings and I were not very familiar with the Trimet system, finding the best route was a bit tricky. A friend of mine recommended I use Trimet’s trip tracker and at least comparing the two of them more I think would’ve been helpful. Trimet’s trip tracker tells you the stop ID for each of your transfers which helps make sure you’re at the right spot for your next bus. You can also email a copy of the trip route to yourself to reference on the go. The app we were using once lost our chosen route after we boarded our train, so we had to remake a new route on the fly. Having an emailed copy saved to my phone might have been nice to have access to and reference.
- Bring the Right Equipment: For the most part, I think we did pretty well here. We all brought plenty of food and water, extra battery packs for our phones, things to keep us busy on the Trimet like books, change to use as bus fare, facemasks to wear on Trimet, appropriate clothing for the summer weather and going outdoors, I even brought a Pacific Northwest plant identification guide (in addition to the ones downloaded to my phone). However, I didn’t think about getting a new pair of insoles for my new boots, which led to my feet absolutely aching by the end of the day after all of that walking. I should’ve known I’d need insoles since I use them for most pairs of shoes but I just hadn’t thought of it. So know what your needs are and plan to ensure you meet those needs.
- It’s Better Together: If you don’t know the Trimet system or the park, bring a buddy! It’s a lot less daunting of a task when you have someone else to help work out what you need to do to make it where you’re going. In addition, as quarantine measures are continuing to be lifted it might be nice to spend some time catching up with a friend on the trails.
So, there you have it. If you are able to access the Trimet system then you can go to Forest Park, even if you don’t live in Portland. All it took was a little searching to figure out how to get there, and we made it with barely any knowledge of the Trimet transit system. If you have been wanting to go to Forest Park and don’t live within walking distance, Trimet might be an accessible option for you to experience Forest Park!
For more tips and advice on routes to Forest Park via public transportation, check out this article from FPC’s Trails and Restoration Manager, Ahmed.