Tag: Willamette Valley

Willamette Mission S.P. Equestrian Trails – 11/02/2025

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date November 4, 2025
No Comments on Willamette Mission S.P. Equestrian Trails – 11/02/2025

A storm system moved through Oregon a week ago followed by a few nice days and then another round of rain on Saturday. This was a much weaker system, and it had moved on by Sunday morning. I had few free hours at the beginning of the morning which was boosted by falling back an hour for Daylight Savings. Heather was walking with her friend Elizabeth so I would be on my own. I decided to head back to Willamette Mission State Park for the second time this year (9/1/25) and check out some of the equestrian trails.

With Daylight Savings moving Sunrise back up to 6:52am I was able to make the 25-minute drive and be there when it opened at 7am. I parked at the equestrian trailhead.

While there was no rain in the forecast patchy fog was, but it was supposed to burn off around 9am. I picked up the dirt equestrian trail from the trailhead and followed it across the paved bike path.

The route I’d planned would be a little over six miles with less than a half mile of that being on sections of trail that we’d hiked before. I followed the equestrian trail for a half mile before arriving at a signed junction.

It won’t be long and some of the trail in the park will be closed due to seasonal flooding.

Right after I took this picture a deer dashed out of the brush on the left, ran across the trail and vanished before I could take another photo.

I went left at this junction which was labeled “H North Loop Start” on the signboard map.

This 0.4-mile section of trail wound through the woods before arriving at a 4-way junction.

I turned right onto the paved path at this junction and followed it for a tenth of a mile to a 3-way junction.

I turned left at the 3-way junction and continued on the paved bike path for 0.6-miles. There was some blue-sky on my right and fog to my left.

American kestrel in the fog.

I left the paved path here and veered right to rejoin the equestrian trails and stayed right at the junction for just under a quarter mile to a junction with the South Hill Trail.

This section of trail crosses this high-water channel coming off of Windsor Island Slough meaning the south loops are sometimes cut off from the rest of the park.

The path passes close to the slough, but it was hard to see with the dense fog. There was a great blue heron on the far side, but the fog made it virtually impossible to photograph.

The South Hill Trail to the left.

I stayed straight saving the South Hill Trail for my loop back and continued another 0.4-miles to another junction.

I turned right at this junction in order to make the widest loop possible. The trail passed through an open bottomland then curved left at a pointer to pass through a short section of forest before making a brief climb to the edge of a filbert grove.

Northern flicker

The trail turned right here following a roadbed around the filbert trees.

This post is “L” on the park map.

A coyote trotted across the road in front of me but disappeared in the trees before I got the camera up.

At the far end of the trees was the “M” signpost.

I turned left continuing around the filberts until I came to post “N”.

Quail

At “N” the trail made a ninety-degree turn to the right along a barren field.

Looking back at the “N” post.

This was the least obvious section of trail over the whole hike.

The “patchy” fog was not letting up.

A covey of quail.

After passing post “O” the trail curved along Goose Lake which I detoured down to when the opportunity presented itself.

Goose Lake

There were a lot of birds around the lake including a couple of ducks, but with all the fog it was hard to get any photos.

Stellar’s jay

After checking out the lake I continued around the field until reaching post “P” at a junction.

Doves

I turned right at post “P” which put me on the South Hill Trail which led through the woods for almost a mile to complete the loop.

Squirrel

This little buck was slowly walking up the trail in front of me for a while before deciding to duck into the brush.

These were some cool mushrooms.

Completing the loop.

I turned right and recrossed the high-water channel then veered right on a narrow path that led me back to the paved bike path.

Starlings

I turned right on the bike path for a few steps then veered left onto the continuation of the equestrian trail.

I followed this section of the equestrian trail for 0.6-miles to the 4-way junction where I’d turned right onto the paved path earlier in the morning.

American kestrel

I turned right onto the paved path and followed it three-quarters of a mile back to the equestrian trailhead.

Self-heal

Two tenths of a mile after turning right I passed a junction with the bike path I had just crossed a little earlier.

The fence along the parking area just ahead.

My hike came in at 6.3-miles with minimal elevation gain.

The dotted line is today’s track. Dark blue is our 2019 track and the track to the left is from our Spring Valley Greenway hike in 2022.

This was a nice little outing despite the fog and some muddy tread. Hopefully it will be a little clearer next time I visit but I did get to see quite a bit of wildlife so I can’t complain. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Willamette Mission Equestrian Trails

Tags Equestrian Trailhead, Goose Lake, hiking, Oregon, South Hill Trail, Willamette mission State Park, Willamette Valley, Windsor Island Slough

Hiking Oregon Salem/Albany Trip report Willamette Valley

Champoeg State Heritage Area

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date June 24, 2025
1 Comment on Champoeg State Heritage Area

On Juneteenth we headed to Champoeg State Heritage Area for a morning hike. We had visited the park in December 2015 (post) as part of our “500 featured hikes” goal and run into a few flooded sections of trail. Our focus on this visit was to hike those sections on this visit to fill in the gaps of Sullivan’s featured hike.

As we’d done on our previous visit we parked at the Riverside Day Use Area.

We followed a paved path through the picnic area to the pavilion which marks the place where the first American government on the Pacific Coast was created.

The Pavillion Trail.

The trail in 2015.

We passed the pavilion and headed down some steps to a trail along the Willamette River where we veered left on the trail closest to the river.

We took the trail angling left which took us to the river.

Duck flying by an eagle’s nest.

The path continued above the river before looping back toward the pavilion.

Bittersweet nightshade

Coastal manroot and red elderberry.

Heading back toward the pavilion.

We came to another set of stairs and headed up to a small picnic shelter.

At the small shelter we detoured to the right to check out the foundational remains of a building then headed back past the shelter on a paved path that led back to the pavilion.

The sign below the window marks the high-water marks of the 1861 flood that destroyed all of the original buildings in the area.

After reading the interpretive signs at the pavilion, we took another path down toward the river.

This path briefly followed the river before veering away and leading to the Townsite Day Use Area and a private residence (We assume this is for the park ranger?).

Robin

At the far end of the Townsite Day Use Area parking lot we picked up the Champoeg Townsite Trail.

This dirt path led us to a group tent area and boat ramp near the Oak Grove Day Use Area.

Scenery along the trail.

The Willamette River.

Blackberry blossoms and wild cucumber (fruit from coastal manroot).

Young rabbit along the trail.

Moth mullein

Starling

At the far end of the group tent area the trail headed toward the boat ramp before turning right through some blackberry bushes.

The trail veered away from the river at a bench near Champoeg Creek. The trail then followed the creek bed to a park road and bike path.

Ground squirrel

We turned left on the bike path and crossed over Champoeg Creek near the campground entrance.

Champoeg Creek

Champoeg Creek in 2015.

We continued on the paved path for a tenth of a mile then turned left at a hiker symbol for the Kitty Newell Gravesite.

In 2015 we went all the way to Butteville but today we had some chores to do at home, so we skipped it this time.

We turned left on the dirt trail and then took another left at a “Y” junction to visit the gravesite.

The gravesite trail is to the left with the Nature Trail to the right.

The trail continues a short distance beyond the gravesite to a bench along Champoeg Creek.

We returned to the junction with the Nature Trail and followed that by staying left at junctions. After 0.4-miles we popped out onto the bike path near another bench.

There was some poison oak along this trail.

Willamette River

We turned right on the bike path and after 0.2-miles found ourselves back at the sign for the Kitty Newell Gravesite. We continued back across Champoeg Creek but stayed on the bike path at the Champoeg Townsite Trail.

We stayed on this paved path for a half mile to a “Visitor Center” pointer.

Ground squirrel

Checker mallow

This was supposed to be a picture of the elegant brodiaea but apparently the camera was obsessed with the grass.

We skipped the center during our 2015 visit so this time we turned left and headed up a small hill.

After walking around the grounds at the Visitor Center we headed back down the hill and continued on the bike path back to the Riverside Day Use Area.

Swallow

Phacelia

Marker for Napoleon Street.

The sign at the bottom of the tree is the water line for flooding that occurred in 1996 and the one up higher (a lot higher) is for 1861.

The bike path leaving the Townsite Day Use Area.

Just hanging out.

Heading for the Riverside Day Use Area parking lot.

Today’s hike came in at 5.7-miles with just 100′ of elevation gain.

It was a beautiful morning, and we accomplished what we’d set out to do by filling in the missing pieces of the featured hike. (One thing to note is that Champoeg is a fee park – $10.00/day or $30.00/annual pass.) With the park being less than 45-minutes from Salem we were home by 10:30am giving us plenty of time to do a few chores before doing some relaxing with the cats. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Champoeg State Heritage Area

Tags champoeg creek, Champoeg State Heritage Area, hiking, Oregon, Riverside Day Use Area, Willamette Valley

Hiking Oregon Portland Trip report Willamette Valley

Wildlife Week – Day6: Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuge and Fernhill Wetlands 05/02/2025

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date May 4, 2025
3 Comments on Wildlife Week – Day6: Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuge and Fernhill Wetlands 05/02/2025

Originally I had planned to do my hike at Finley Wildlife Refuge (post) on the Friday of Wildlife Week, but going into the week the forecast called for rain showers. I rearranged the order to move Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuge and Fernhill Wetlands to Friday morning feeling in hopes that I could finish these hikes before 11am when the showers were forecasted to start. By the end of the week the chance of showers had been replaced by mostly sunny skies.

We visited Wapato Lake in February 2024 (post) and had enjoyed the short hike. Located in Gaston, OR the trailhead is just under an hour from Salem. A paved path leads to a footbridge over Wapato Creek and then dikes lead right for 2 miles and left for 0.6. We hadn’t done the full 2-miles to the right in 2024, so I started with that section then hiked to the end of the 0.6-mile section before returning to the car for a total of 5.6-miles with virtually no elevation gain.

All trails are open from February 1st through September 30th, then from October 1st through November 30th the final 1.3-mile stretch to the right (south) is closed, and there is no hiking allowed during hunting season from December 1st to January 31st.

There were a lot of ducks, geese, and herons at the lake along with smaller birds in the surrounding trees.
Geese

Osprey

Killdeer

Meadow checker-mallow

Wood ducks

Northern shovelers

Ducks, geese, and a heron.

Scrunched heron

Stretched heron (same heron)

Sparrow

A different heron and a duck.

Yep, it’s a nutria.

Spotted sandpiper

One of several benches located along the dikes.

American coot

Gadwall

Dove

Crow

American kestrel

Swallow

Cinnamon teals having a disagreement.

End of the trail to the south.

View from the end of the trail.

Wood ducks

Robin

Short billed dowitchers

Green winged teal

Hooded merganser and a gadwall

Ring-necked ducks

Heading to the left (NNE) now.

Red-winged blackbird

Egrets, herons, and ducks.

Great blue heron and egret

Cinnamon teal and northern shoveler

Hooded mergansers and a cinnamon teal

Northern shovelers and a northern pintail on the right.

California quail

End of the trail in this direction.

One thing to note is that the bathroom is currently closed due to budget shortages. Other than that, this was a great hike with a nice variety of wildlife and no other people.

From Gaston it was just a ten-minute drive to Fernhill Wetlands.

We had also been here in February 2024 (post), but not on the same day as Wapato Lake. I did virtually the same route today as on that trip which is described in detail in that trip report.
My 3.3-mile track with minimal elevation gain.

The wildlife was sparser here than it had been on our previous visit, but there were a few species about. I also saw my fourth and fifth Bullock’s oriole of the week. Every one of these I’ve spotted have been while flying past me with their bright orange feathers flashing momentarily only to disappear into a tree or bush. I did have some more cooperative subjects though including the first hummingbird of the week.
Swallow

Osprey

Killdeer

American coot

Mallard

Anna’s hummingbird

A bit of the pink on it’s throat.

Ring-necked ducks
Bald eagle

Gadwalls

Song sparrow

Purple martins

Pied billed grebe

Mallard and ducklings

Mallards

Fringecup

Rabbit

Sandpipers

Ground squirrel

American goldfinch. I’d seen a number of these this week but had only managed a picture of the back of one at Finley Wildlife Refuge.

This was another fun morning of looking for wildlife, but my feet and legs are more than happy that there is only one day of Wildlife Week left. The plan is for Heather to join me on the last hike, and we are hoping to check out a couple of waterfalls before stopping at Fern Ridge Wildlife Area west of Eugene. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Wapato Lake NWR and Fernhill Wetlands

Tags Fernhill Wetlands, Forest Grove, Gaston, hiking, Oregon, Wapato Lake, Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Wildlife, Willamette Valley

Corvallis Hiking Oregon Trip report Willamette Valley

Wildlife Week – Day 4: Finley National Wildlife Refuge 04/30/2025

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date May 2, 2025
3 Comments on Wildlife Week – Day 4: Finley National Wildlife Refuge 04/30/2025

The midway point of my wildlife week vacation was also the 750th day hiking for me since 2006. Given these milestones, and a sunny forecast, I headed to William L. Finely National Wildlife Refuge for the longest hike of the week. The refuge is located south of Corvallis just under an hour drive from Salem.

This was my fifth visit to this refuge (2017, 2020, 2021, 2024) and my plan was to repeat my October 2024 route and add the 1.8-mile Mill Hill Loop. This resulted in a 14.8-mile hike with a little over 950′ of cumulative elevation gain. For a more detailed description of the route you can click the 2024 link above.
The orange loop is the Mill Hill Loop.

I wound up not entirely retracing my 2024 route due to a herd of elk rerouting me around a field. (Oddly today’s route followed the trail whereas I’d gotten off of it in 2024.)
The orange section on the right is my detour with the solid cyan representing the 2024 route. (Other colored lines are from the other previous visits.)

Since I described the majority of the route last October this post will be light on details and even heavier than usual on photos. I set off from the Turtle Flats Trailhead just before 6am and quickly found that the grass was longer and a lot wetter than it had been in October.

Rabbit

Sunrise view

Mt. Jefferson

I hadn’t gotten very far before I spotted a couple of elk ahead.

As I scanned the tree line I realized there was a whole herd out there and then moving across the field I noticed something smaller.
Coyote

The coyote spotted me and decided to head the other way. The elk on the other hand didn’t appear to be too bothered by my presence, at least yet.

I slowly continued in their direction since that was where the Prairie Trail led.

They finally started to take note as more and more elk emerged from the tree line.

I stopped here not wanting to get any closer and waited to see what the elk would do.

The lead bull here seemed to have a leadership role because once he emerged and headed across the field the herd followed and then circled up.

They were still a little too close to the route of the Prairie Trail for my liking and I was doing my best to follow the Leave No Trace principle of respecting wildlife so I turned around and started to head back the way I’d come. As soon as I did that the herd started off in the opposite direction.

I decided to continue on now that they had moved further away and I wouldn’t be following them. They had gone behind a stand of trees and the Prairie Trail cut through the trees several hundred yards from the end of the woods.

Shortly after I exited the trees into the next field the elk herd came around the trees giving me one last look at them as I headed away.
On my 2024 hike I had turned left here on the track at the edge of the photo, but with the elk out there I stayed straight(ish) along the tree line. Apparently that is part of the Prairie Extension Trail, but it was a more obvious path and there was an equally obvious path that angled off the extension trail back to the main Prairie Trail.

The next mile and half was pretty uneventful except for my feet freezing. They were soaked and it has only in the upper 30s Fahrenheit. Once I reached McFadden Marsh the wildlife sightings picked up again.
It was a wet muddy hike this time of year.

Camas and buttercups

McFadden Marsh sending up a light fog.

Wood ducks

Northern shoveler

Mallards, a green winged teal, a cinnamon teal, and a wood duck.

Ruddy duck

I’m sure it’s a nutria, it’s almost always a nutria.

Cinnamon teals

Female wood duck

Bald eagles on the far side of the marsh.

Blackbird

Buffleheads

Great blue heron

Green winged teals and American wigeons

Dove

Marsh wren

Heron hanging out near the Mcfadden Marsh blind.

Egrets and ducks

Egrets

Robin

I left McFadden Marsh behind, and the next wildlife action happened along Cheadle Marsh when an American bittern landed in the reeds ahead of me.

There were actually two bitterns.

It took me a moment to realize there was a second bittern.

Their camo is so good.

American coot

Swallows

Pied billed grebe

Ring-necked duck

Cinnamon teals

I passed Cheadle Barn and saw a few birds near the Cheadle Barn Pond.
Manroot and the Cheadle Barn

California scrub jay

Bittern flying over the Cheadle Barn Pond with Pigeon Butte in the background.

Wildlife and wildflower sightings were scattered along the rest of my route.
Iris and golden paintbrush on the side of Pigeon Butte.

Golden paintbrush and I guess the beetle counts as wildlife.

Savanah sparrow near the Finger Ponds.

Geese in a field near the Finger Ponds.

Turkey vulture

Goose and goslings in Cabell Marsh.

Great blue heron at Cabell Marsh.

American goldfinch near Cabell Marsh.

California quail near Cattail Pond.

Pied billed grebe at Cattail Pond.

Camas along the Cattail Pond Trail.

Pacific waterleaf along the Beaver Pond Trail.

Checker lily along the Beaver Pond Trail.

Fairy lanterns along the Beaver Pond Trail.

Giant white wake-robin along the Beaver Pond Trail.

Bullfrogs and blackbirds were all I saw at the Beaver Pond.

Turkeys along the Beaver Pond Trail near Park Headquarters.

The start and end of the Mill Hill Loop.

Yellow violets in the midst of invasive herb robert.

Bleeding heart

Gray squirrel

Star flower

Spotted coralroot

I’d once spotted a turtle on this log in a pond below the Mill Hill Loop so I took a picture hoping for another one. Instead I got a bullfrog.

Mallards in the same pond.

Solomonseal

Tolmie’s mariposa lily

The forest is pretty along the Mill Hill Loop.

Poet’s shooting star

Small-flowered woodland-star

The end and start of the Mill Hill Loop.

Tough-leaved iris

There were a bunch of bullfrogs sunning at the little pond along the Woodpecker Loop.

Lomatium on the Woodpecker Loop.

Woodpecker Loop Overlook. I took a break on the bench here and changed into dry socks after having a snack.

This northern harrier was putting on an aerial display while I took my break.

Wildflowers along Bald Hill.

Wild rose

Checkerbloom

Tough-leaved iris and golden paintbrush

More turkeys along Finley Refuge Road.

Cabell Barn across from the entrance road to the Cabell Marsh Trail.

Honeybee swarm along the road to the Cabell Marsh Trail. It looks a little like a heart.

This end of Cabell Marsh was practically deserted. My guess was that there was plenty of water right now in less visited areas, so the birds were avoiding this area for now.

You can almost always count on a coot though.

Cormorants out on a log in the middle of the marsh.

Homer Campbell Boardwalk

Wood ducks. These might have been the first significant wildlife I’d seen from the boardwalk. It’s a really neat trail I just rarely see any wildlife from it (with the exception of the shelter).

Turkey vulture flying over Turtle Flats.

Turtles at Turtle Flats!

Ending the day with turtles put a nice bow on a great day of hiking. Finley is a great place to hike and see wildlife. The Mill Hill and Woodpecker Loops are open year around along with the Homer Campbell Boardwalk while the remaining trails are open seasonally from April 1st to October 31st. With over half of wildlife week done it’s going be hard to top today. I’m planning on heading north for the next couple of hikes which might mean a couple of species I haven’t seen yet this week which I’ll be on the lookout for. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Finley Wildlife Refuge 2025

Hiking Oregon Salem/Albany Trip report Willamette Valley

Wildlife Week – Day 2: Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge 04/28/2025

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date April 30, 2025
No Comments on Wildlife Week – Day 2: Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge 04/28/2025

For day 2 of my “Wildlife Week” vacation I returned to Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge. This marked my fourth visit to this refuge which is just under 30 minutes from Salem (2014) (2021) (2022). For this visit I parked at the Eagle Marsh Trailhead and hiked a total of 10.5-miles visiting Eagle, Teal, Willow, Mallard, Egret, Pintail and Killdeer Marshes as well as Mohoff, Wood Duck, Dunlin and South Ponds.
The route included two short road walks along Buena Vista and Wintel Roads.

My “sunrise” start was once again under a canopy of clouds making pictures of the numerous ducks and other birds difficult during the lollipop loop past Eagle Marsh and around Teal and Willow Marshes.

Ring-necked ducks

Much of the area, and most trails, are closed between October 1st and April 1st each year.

Ring-necked ducks and a very out of focus pied billed grebe.

Willow Marsh

Northern filckers

Geese

Teal Marsh

Pied billed grebe

Common yellowthroat

Pair of bald eagles in the snag.

One of the eagles.

I believe this is a greater yellowlegs.

Bufflehead

Green-winged teals

Killdeer

Leaving Eagle Marsh. Even over an hour after sunrise there wasn’t much light.

A 0.2-mile walk to the SW along Buena Vista Road brought me to the start of the dike trails at Mohoff Pond and Mallard Marsh. I took the dike between the two and followed it to a 4-way junction between Mohoff Pond, Mallard Marsh, Egret Marsh, and Pintail Marsh.

Robin

The mudflats at Mallard Marsh were busy.

Green-winged teals and several species of shore birds. I think the darker, larger birds are short billed dowitchers, the smallest are sandpipers and there is one with a black mark on its underside which may be a dunlin.

Better look at the short billed dowitchers.

A little better look at what I think might be dunlins.

I see you.

This American bittern saw me way before I saw it. It had flown up earlier and landed in the vegetation and even though I watched where it landed, I couldn’t make it out until it took flight again.

Savanah sparrow that appears as annoyed with the bugs as I was.

Not a great photo but there is a northern pintail lower right.

A sandpiper, my guess is a least sandpiper.

American wigeons. Another not great shot but they were all sticking close to the far shore of Mallard Marsh.

Mallards hanging out at Mallard Marsh.

Nearing the 4-way junction.

At the junction I went straight passing between Egret and Pintail Marshes. This was the first time I’d taken this route.

Northern shoveler

I made my way to the Pintail Marsh Trailhead and then road walked another 0.3-miles east along Wintel Road to a small pullout along the Prairie Extension Trail.
Pintail Marsh from the trailhead along Wintel Road.

Cinamon Teal

I veered right on the Prairie Extension’s grassy tract.

Camas

Hawk

Song sparrow

Spotted towhee

Common vetch

After two tenths of a mile on the Prairie Extension I noticed a hiker symbol marking the Woodland Loop Trail on the right.

While this trail has theoretically been there on my previous visits it hasn’t always been obvious or passable. Storm damage and Spring flooding had kept me off this trail until today. The third of a mile trail passes through a dense and damp woodland before returning to the grassy track near the end of the Rail Trail boardwalk.

Avens

Western meadowrue

Obstacle

Newer looking bridge.

Older bridge.

End of the Woodland Loop.

The boardwalk to the left.

I turned right and hiked around Dunlin and Killdeer Ponds then made my way back to the Rail Trail boardwalk. There was some commotion at the SW corner of Dunlin Pond caused by several bald eagles having a heated conversation.
The one trying to land was apparently not invited to the party.

There are 3 immature and 2 adult eagles in the trees. Then there was the juvenile that wasn’t welcome and possibly another juvenile that had been flying around. I was having a hard time keeping track of just how many there were.

After tearing my focus away from the eagle meeting, I watched a northern harrier hunt in the field opposite of Dunlin Pond.
Grey ghost

Dunlin Pond

These may be the two juveniles that were not allowed at the meeting.

A nearly dry South Pond on the right after having looped around Killdeer Marsh.

The start of the boardwalk.

I didn’t see much of anything along the boardwalk (which is typical) until near the end when things picked up near Wood Duck Pond.
Dove

Song sparrow

Wood ducks

Mallard

Swallow

Cinnamon teal

I turned right at the end of the boardwalk and took the Prairie Extension back to Witnel Road and then hiked back to the Pintail Marsh Trailhead.

Woodpecker

Pintail Marsh (all the black specs are insects)

I went left along the marsh and stayed left at junctions to pass Mohoff Pond and make my way back to Buena Vista Road.

Female red-winged blackbird

Male red-winged blackbird

American coot

The highly invasive American bullfrog.

A good look at the size difference between a Canada goose (left) and cackling geese.

Sunning snake

Canada goose

I walked the road back to Eagle Marsh where a great blue heron was hanging out next to the overlook.

The heron’s head between the interpretive signs.

Ankeny has never disappointed. I always see a lot of wildlife, but getting good pictures without a professional camera and telephoto lens is difficult given the size of the ponds and how easy it is for the birds to put a good deal of distance between people and themselves. In addition to the wildlife included in the post I also saw an osprey, a coyote (just before pulling into the parking area), a scrub jay, and numerous small birds that would not cooperate for photos. All in all, it was a great addition to Wildlife Week. Happy Trails!

Flicker Album: Ankeny 2025

Corvallis Hiking Oregon Salem/Albany Trip report Willamette Valley

Albany Parks and Snag Boat Bend – 04/22/2023

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date April 24, 2023
3 Comments on Albany Parks and Snag Boat Bend – 04/22/2023

The delayed arrival of Spring weather has begun affecting the timing of the hikes that I’d planned for us this year. We had originally planned a wildflower hike for this weekend, but they are running at least two weeks behind so we turned to a pair of wildlife hikes instead. Our first stop was at the Snag Boat Bend unit of the William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge.

This 341-acre unit is located a across the Willamette River to the East of the 5,325-acre refuge. The unit has several miles of trails although the amount accessible fluctuates due to flooding.
Not sure how “official” the writing is on the map, but it wasn’t wrong about the Turtle Loop being “closed” (high water).

The Snag Boat Bend Loop Trail begins as a boardwalk that passes over the North Beaver Pond. Oddly there wasn’t much, if any, water in this pond despite other areas later being flooded.

After the short boardwalk section the trail became a combination of grass/mud as it followed a swollen Lake Creek toward the Willamtte River.

A swollen Lake Creek

A third of a mile from the trailhead is a picnic table overlooking a former channel of the Willamette River that is now an oxbow lake filled by Lake Creek.

The oxbow lake.

The trail makes a hard left at the picnic table passing along the water.
Lots of water in the lake.

Woodpecker hiding in the trees.

Just under 0.2 miles from the picnic table, during low water, is said to be a path that makes it possible to connect the Snag Boat Band and Turtle Loop Trails.
Note the sign on the far side vs the closer sign barely sticking up out of the water.

A quarter mile from the picnic table the Snag Boat Bend Loop turns left at a junction. We stayed straight and visited the Observation Blind before setting off on the Blue Heron Trail.
Oregon grape

Red flowering currant

Slug

Signs at the junction.

The observation blind.

There wasn’t a whole lot to observe from the blind since the morning fog limited visibility.

Goose

Spotted towhee

Mallard drake

The Blue Heron Trail followed the boarder of the refuge and some private farmland.

It was approximately another quarter mile from the blind to a 4-way junction. Here the Blue Heron Trail began and finished a theoretical loop using the left most forks and the Turtle Trail split off to the right along a dike.
Blue Heron Trail to the left and Turtle Trail on the right.

We turned right onto the Turtle Trail and as we got onto the dike we could see that the area below, where a loop shown on the Oregonhikers page joined back up, was likely flooded. We followed the dike a quarter of a mile to another junction where the Turtle Trail made a hard right and descended from the dike into an open area where several rabbits were busy having their breakfast.

American widgeon

We followed this grassy track for a third of a mile back to the swollen Lake Creek where, during low water, the Turtle Loop would turn right along the creek and loop back around.

Another sign out in the middle of the water.

We turned back and returned to the junction with the Blue Heron Trail.
The start of a possible loop using the Blue Heron Trail. The fainter track on the right heading downhill was flooded just 100 feet or so away.

The flooded area where the loop would end.

I had gone down to the flooded section to see if there was possibly a way across without having to wade but there wasn’t. The good news was that my heading down to this spot had caused a great horned owl to move trees which allowed both Heather (on the other section of the Blue Heron Trail) and myself to spot it.

Since we knew that we would be able to make the Blue Heron Trail into a loop we followed it a half mile from the junction, making a sharp right near the 0.4-mile mark and decided to turn around. The trail had gone from gravel to wet grass and our feet were getting pretty damp which helped make the decision to turn around.
Cottonwood with red flowering currant, Oregon grape, and Indian plum blooming in front.

We were able to keep our feet dry on the gravel surfaces.

Mushroom

Rufous Hummingbird

Hawk preparing for takeoff.

We had started to go past the turn for the Blue Heron Trail so this photo is as we headed back toward the turn. We came from the right-hand side so the path straight ahead would have been the “sharp right”.

Killdeer

Our turn around spot. The trail was beginning to bend back to the East here.

We headed back along the Blue Heron Trail following it to the Snag Boat Bend Loop where we turned right in order to finish that loop.
A chipping sparrow among the golden-crowned sparrows.

On the Snag Boat Bend Loop

The trail turned left to follow this gravel roadbed for the final third of a mile.

The gate in the distance is at the trailhead.

Our hike at Snag Boat Bend came in at 3.9 miles with maybe 50′ of elevation gain. Had some of the loops not been flooded it might have been a bit shorter.

It was a nice first visit though and we are now interested in returning in late Summer/early Fall when some of the flooded trails might be accessible. While the fog made it a bit hard to see we still managed to see a few ducks, a goose, several rabbits, the owl, a hawk, lots of smaller birds, and one bald eagle that flew overhead. From the trailhead we drove North to the city of Albany where we’d plan to visit a series of the city’s parks. The idea was to start at Monteith Riverpark and hike East along the Willamette River to Simpson Park and then continue along the river there past First and Second Lakes if the trail wasn’t flooded. If it was flooded, we could turn inland at Simpson Park and re-visit the Talking Water Gardens (post).

I had two reasons for putting this urban hike on our schedule. First it was close to home and secondly Monteith Riverfront Park sits at the confluence of the Calapooia and Willamette Rivers, and the Calapooia is one of Oregon’s rivers that we had yet to see on a hike. This 80-mile long tributary of the Willamette begins in the Willamette National Forest near Tidbits Mountain (post) and flows Northwest through Brownsville, OR before turning North to the East of Interstate 5. It was disappointing to arrive and find that the entire park was closed for a large waterfront project by the City of Albany. (Normally I would check the status of our destination prior to heading out, but I didn’t expect an entire city park to be closed, and after looking online when I got home, I’m not sure I would have found the information anyway.)
We wound up parking East of the Riverfront Community Center and hoping on the Dave Clark Trail there.

Less than 100 yards from where we’d parked we came to an observation platform that led out over the Willamette River. From this platform we could at least see the mouth of the Calapooia emptying into the Willamette.

The confluence ahead to the left.

Highway 20 passing over the Willamette to the left. Fun fact about U.S. Highway 20 – It runs from Newport, OR to Boston, MA and is the longest road in the USA according to the Federal Highway Administration. Click here for more information and an interesting write up of the drive from Boston to Newport by Boots on the Trail.

We followed the Dave Clark Trail East passing under both bridges of the highway and then later under the Union Pacific Railroad.

Orange crowned warbler. One of many small birds we saw along this trail.

We thought it was a little odd to see two occupied nests atop the railroad so close together until we realized that the occupants weren’t both birds of prey.

Canada geese were using one of the nests.

Might be the mate looking acting as lookout from the bridge.

Osprey occupied the other and appeared to be in the process of renovations.

We also encountered a beautiful male Anna’s hummingbird but for the life of me I couldn’t get either one of the cameras I was carrying to focus on the little guy so the only picture we wound up with was a cropped shot from Heather’s phone.
His bright pink head was more impressive in person.

After ducking under the railroad and passing some apartments the trail passed the Willamette Community Garden and climbed to NE Oak Street.
The community garden (not pictured) was on our right.

Pretty tulips at the sign.

Here the trail follows several blocks of sidewalk before reaching its end at Bowman Park. The official route of the trail turned right on Oak St for a block then left for 5 blocks NE Water Ave to Geary St where it turned left and descended 3 blocks to Bowman Park. We stayed straight on Front Ave NE though and followed it 3 blocks to Harrison St. NE where we turned right for a block to NE Water Ave to rejoin the Dave Clark Trail.
Not a lot to see in the residential neighborhoods but we did cross Pettyjohn Creek along the way.

Sign for Bowman Park at Geary St.

Bowman Park on the left and the paved path we took on the right.

A paved path led East from Bowman Park behind a new apartment complex where it turned to a wood chip surface.

Cormant in the middle of the Willamette.

At the far end of the apartment complex the trail suddenly turned into a slick, muddy single track.

Squirrel

Things got started getting interesting here, and not in the good way. We quickly started passing vacant and/or abandoned homeless camps and the trail surface was just a mess. At this point we were only about a half mile from the Simpson Park Trailhead though so we pressed on.
Seen near a homeless camp which sort of captures the situation. A combination of unaffordable house, drug abuse, and mental illness has created a crisis up and down the West Coast with no simple (or quick) answer.

We initially mistook all the footprints and bike tracks as a sign that the trail saw good recreational use.

According to the Oregonhikers.org Field Guide entry for the Albany Riverfront Hike there is a concrete bridge over Cox Creek near Simpson Park. We never made it that far though as after a quarter mile we came to small pond over the trail. There was no foreseeable way around and we didn’t want to do to much searching for an alternate route for fear of stumbling upon an occupied camp so we turned around.

Prior to reaching the impassible puddle we had already decided to forgo trying to hike further along the Willamtte from Simpson Park and had planned instead of visit Talking Water Gardens and return via roads instead of the muddy trail. Now that we’d been stymied though we trudged back through the mud and past the homeless camps to the apartments where we turned left on a path that led a short distance uphill into Eads Park.

We turned left and passed through this small park then turned right onto Burkhart St NE and began our second stint of neighborhood hiking. After a block on Burkhart we made a left on Willamette Ave NE and followed it 0.2-miles to its end at the Albany/Millersburg Water Reclamation Facility where we turned right onto Davidson St. NE. A block on Davidson brought us back to Front AVE NE and a sign for the Talking Water Gardens.

Front Ave became Waverly Dr NE and we followed it until we finally crossed Cox Creek three tenths of a mile later.

We made our way to the gated entrance to the Talking Water Gardens happy to see that the man-made waterfall in the Beaver Marsh was flowing this time.

Buffleheads

We turned right and headed for the main sign board to get a picture of the map and decide on our route.
We decided to loop around the West Beaver Marsh and Central Oak areas before heading back.

There was obviously a lot more water present now then there had been in November and while there were less ducks present there was a larger variety of birds and best of all a bunch of western pond turtles.

View from above the waterfall.

The first set of turtles we spotted.

Western pond turtles.

Female red-winged blackbird

Green-winged teal

Yellow-rumped warbler (Audubon’s)

More turtles

Mallard drake

Turkey vulture

Another bale of turtles. (I had to look up “bale” because I had no idea what a group of turtles was called.)

Another man-made waterfall.

This had been full of ducks on our previous visit.

Yet another turtle.

Black phoebe

Acorn woodpecker

Sparrow

Northern shoveler

Hummingbird

Red-winged blackbird

Bench along the Central Oak area.

The first goslings we’ve spotted this year.

Very zoomed in shot of a hawk seen in the distance.

Bullfrog

Marsh wren

Final set of turtles.

Mallard pair

Chickadee

Yellow-rumped warbler (Myrtle)

We took about an hour to hike a little over 1.25-miles through the gardens. There was a lot of stopping to watch the wildlife and attempt to get photos. After exiting the gardens we made our way back to Front Ave via Waverly Drive and this time followed signs for the Dave Clark Trail back to it.

We followed the Dave Clark Trail back to our car, but not before spotting a bit more wildlife.
A couple ahead of us on the trail spotted this guy for us.

Squirrel

Our Albany Parks hike wound up being just 6.3 miles with under 100′ of elevation gain bringing our total for the day to 10.2 miles and maybe 100 total feet of elevation gain. All the hiking on paved surfaces in Albany combined with having wet shoes and socks made it feel like more though.

At the end of the day we were glad that we wound up in Talking Water Gardens given how much fun wildlife we spotted there but I probably would not do the rest of this hike over. The Dave Clark Trail along the Willamette was nice enough and if I was in Albany for another reason and had some time it would be a fine place for a stroll but necessary neighborhood walk to reach Simpson Park/Talking Water is not nearly as nice as either simply starting at the Simpson Park Trailhead or hiking along Cox Creek from Waverly Lake as we had done in November. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Snag Boat Bend and Albany Parks

Hiking Oregon Salem/Albany Willamette Valley

Minto-Brown Island Park Outings Spring 2023

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date April 18, 2023
No Comments on Minto-Brown Island Park Outings Spring 2023

For several years Heather has volunteered with our local running store, Gallagher Fitness Resources, Princess Steps, a Women’s Beginning Walking Running Clinic. They meet on Tuesday nights but have “homework” walks throughout the week which she and I have been doing together. The longer walks are set for Saturdays and for three of the last four weeks we’ve taken those walks at Minto-Brown Island Park. The park has also been part of a couple of urban hikes that we’ve taken in previous years (2017 & 2020).

Despite the numerous visits there were still sections of trails that I hadn’t been on. I decided to use my second day off of work to check a few of those off my to-visit list. Minto-Brown is even closer to our house than Baskett Slough Wildlife Refuge which I’d visited the day before (post). In fact, it’s less than a mile away as the crow flies, but it is on the other side of the Willamette River so I had to drive a little over 3.5-miles to Riverfront Park where we’d been starting all of our walks.

Heather’s plan from the walking group had us increasing distance each week starting with 5.3 miles on 3/19 then 6.6 on 3/25 and 9 miles on 4/8. (Heather wanted more hill practice before the hiking season and since Minto-Brown is mostly flat we did a 7.5 mile “hilly” hike through the West Salem neighborhoods on 4/1.) For this visit I was planning on going a little further again by visiting Eola Bend County Park which borders Minto-Brown to the NW along the Willamette River. I wasn’t sure what my actual route would be though. Minto-Brown is full of both pave and dirt trails, some of which parallel one another just feet apart. Numerous loop options are possible, but closure due to flooding or nesting birds can block access to certain trails at times. All of the visits this year started the same as we first passed the Gerry Frank Salem Rotary Amphitheater in Riverfront Park and took the Peter Courtney Minto Island Bridge over the Willamette Slough and into Minto-Brown Island Park on the Minto-Island Conservation Trail.
The amphitheater and bridge on 3/19 23.

The amphitheater and bridge on 4/14/23.

On the first three visits we took the first paved right (one mile from Riverfront Park) and stayed right at the next junction to walk along the Willamette River and eventually arrive at the Lot 3 Trailhead. On this final visit I was unable to access the path along the river due to high water from recent rains so I forked left on a gravel that is often closed during bald eagle nesting season.
Wetland near the bridge on 4/8.

The wetland on 4/14.

Signs at the 2nd junction – 3/19.

The path to the Willamette River on 3/19.

The path on 4/14.

April 8th along the Willamette.

April 14th on the inland gravel path.

Beyond Lot 3 is where our visits began to differ. On our first (shortest) visit we continued South from the lot and took the second left (Brown Squirrel & Yellow Duck Loop) looped around the South and East ends of the Dog Park to Lot 2 where we crossed the entrance road and followed the 10k path back to the junction where we had taken our first right that morning. From there we retraced our steps back to Riverfront Park.

For the second hike we continued South from Lot 3 then forked right and crossed Oxbow Slough on a footbridge before turning back after another 0.75-miles at a “T” junction with the Blue Heron, Purple Rabbit, and 10k Trails. We retraced our steps, passing the shared Squirrel & Duck Loop section that we’d taken the previous week turning instead at the next right (We were coming from the opposite direction as the previous week. This was also part of the Yellow Duck Loop and took led us along the North side of the dog park to Lot 2 where we turned left and again followed the 10k path back as we had the week before.

On our third outing we followed our route from the week before to the “T” junction but turned left and continued on the shared Purple Rabbit/10k Loop to return to the junction near the bridge over the slough. This time we returned through Lot 3 taking the right fork of the Red Osprey Loop at the North end of the lot. This loop brought us through an open field with an old cherry orchard to the 10k Loop where we took a left and followed the familiar route back to Riverfront.

My route was most similar to our third outing. It varied in that I had to stay inland instead of hiking along the river and I turned onto the dirt Blue Heron Loop path shortly after crossing the bridge over the slough.
The Minto-Island Conservation Trail (Used during all four hikes.)

Oxbow Slough is accessible near Lot 3.
Oxbow slough 3/19.

April 14th

Just South of Lot 3 the paved path is shared by the 10k, Purple Rabbit, Blue Heron, Green Deer, Yellow Duck and Brown Squirrel Loops.

The footbridge over Oxbow Slough is part of the 10k, Blue Heron, and Purple Rabbit Loops.

The Blue Heron Loop ran parallel to the paved path and at times nearly touched.
Blue Heron Loop running parallel to the 10k/Purple Rabbit Loops.

Field along the Blue Heron Loop

The biggest difference, and most of the extra mileage came when I continued straight toward the Brown’s Island Demolition Landfill when the Blue Heron Loop turned left. At the landfill I turned right and followed a gravel roadbed around it to the Orange Turtle Loop onto which I turned right following counterclockwise into Eola Bend County Park.
The “T” junction where the 10k/Purple Rabbit Loops turn left from the Blue Heron Loop.

Most of the junctions are well signed with maps which helped keep me on track.

Willamette River from the Orange Turtle Loop.

Orange Turtle Loop

The boarder between Minto-Brown Island Park and Eola Bend County Park.

A bit of the history of Eola Bend County Park.

Nice map of the Willamette River watershed.

Eola Bend County Park

I took advantage of this picnic table to take a short break.

After completing the Orange Turtle Loop I went back along the landfill (Admittedly one of the least exciting things to experience on a hike.) passing the path I’d arrived at the landfill on and continued just over a tenth of a mile on the gravel road which brought me to the end of a paved road at the landfill.
The landfill behind the map.

Arriving at the road.

I turned left here and in less than a tenth of a mile was back on the Purple Rabbit/10k Loop which uses a 0.3-mile section of the road.
The 10k/Purple Rabbit Loop on the left.

I was now back on the route of our third visit and followed the Purple Rabbit/10k Loop just over a half mile to a junction with the Green Deer Loop, with a short detour to a bench along Oxbow Slough.

The Green Deer Loop junction.

I made my one mistake of the day here thinking that I could turn right (we’d gone left the week before) and do this loop. Just over 0.4-miles in though I came upon a small pond in the middle of the trail.

I backtracked to the Purple Rabbit/10k Loop and again followed our third visit route until coming to the Brown Squirrel/Yellow Duck/10k Loop where I turned right. This was the path we’d taken on our first visit to loop around the dog park. I followed the paved path around the South side of the park but then instead of staying on the trail the loops follow I hoped onto a rougher dirt path that paralleled it and followed that to Lot 2 where I hopped back onto the 10k Loop.
The paved 10k/Yellow Duck/Brown Squirrel Loop.

The rougher dirt path.

The dog park (possibly the happiest place in Salem, at least for dogs).

The 10k Loop on the opposite side of the entrance road from Lot 2.

I deviated once more from our earlier visits when I left the 10k Loop just before it joins the Red Osprey Loop. I crossed that paved path and onto a faint dirt path that led past the Old Cherry Orchard. I followed this dirt path just under a half mile to the paved 5k/10k/Red Osprey/Brown Squirrel Loop where I turned right and climbed a small hill to the Minto Island Conservation Trail.
From our 3/19 hike on the 10k Loop. The path running from left to right is the Red Osprey Loop. On this last trip I took the path on the left down to the sign below at the junction and continued straight.

At the sign heading toward the old cherry orchard.

The old cherry orchard.

I turned left onto the Conservation Trail and returned to Riverfront Park to complete my hike.

Cherry blossoms.

One constant throughout all of the hikes was the abundant wildlife.
Deer – 3/19

Bald eagle – 3/19

Cormorant on the Willamette – 3/25

Sparrow – 3/25

Lesser goldfinch – 4/8

Mallard – 4/8

Wood ducks up in a tree – 4/8

Osprey – 4/8

Green-winged teal – 4/14

Mallard – 4/14

Golden-crowned sparrow – 4/14

Robin – 4/14

White-crowned sparrow – 4/14

Squirrel – 4/14

Rabbit – 4/14 (This was one of several dozen bunnies that I encountered on this day.)

Woodpecker – 4/14

Lot 3 also had its share of wildlife.
Scrub jay – 3/19

Dove – 4/8

Killdeer – 4/14

Red breasted sapsuckers – 4/14 (Males peck the sign to make noise to either attract mates or establish territory.)

Pied billed grebe in Oxbow Slough – 3/19

Ring-necked ducks from the bridge over Oxbow Slough – 3/25

Buffleheads from the bridge over Oxbow Slough – 3/25

Geese from the bridge over Oxbow Slough – 3/25

Hummingbird along the Blue Heron Trail – 4/14

Orange-crowned warbler along the Blue Heron Trail – 4/14

Dark-eyed junco at Eola Bend County Park – 4/14

Northern flicker at Eola Bend County Park – 4/14

Swallows at Eola Bend County Park – 4/14

Red-tailed hawk near the landfill – 4/14

Great blue heron at Oxbow Slough across from the bench viewpoint near Lot 4 (Homestead Road) – 4/14

Wood duck drake in Oxbow Slough – 4/8

Ruby-crowned kinglet – 4/8

Rabbit – 4/8

Egret between the Red Osprey and 10k Loops – 4/8

Turkey vulture near the old cherry orchard – 4/14

We’re lucky to have this park nearby and it seems crazy that we still haven’t checked out all of the trails yet. It at least gives us a reason, besides the abundant wildlife, to keep going back. That being said we are really looking forward to some more remote hiking in quieter forests. Happy Trails!

Yellow-3/19
Black-3/25
Red-4/8
Cyan-4/14

Flickr: Minto Brown Walks / Minto Brown and Eola Bend County Park

Tags 10k loop, blue heron loop, Brown Squirrel loop, Dog Park, Eola Bend County Park, green deer loop, Lot 3, minto-brown island park, old cherry orchard, orange turtle loop, oxbow slough, purple rabbit loop, red osprey loop, Salem, willamette river, Willamette Valley, Yellow Duck Loop

Hiking Oregon Salem/Albany Trip report Willamette Valley

Baskett Slough Wildlife Refuge – 04/13/2023

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date April 17, 2023
2 Comments on Baskett Slough Wildlife Refuge – 04/13/2023

We have eagerly been awaiting the arrival of Spring but instead we are seemingly stuck in Winter. I had scheduled a couple of days off in mid-April with dreams of sunny hikes filled with wildflowers and great views. Those dreams were put on hold and my hopes turned to dry hikes with decent views and maybe some wildlife.

I turned to an old reliable source for wildlife for my first hike of my extended weekend and made the 15 minute drive to the Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge. Despite its proximity to our house this was only my fourth time hiking at the refuge, in large part due to the fact that the vast majority of the trails and refuge is closed from October 1st through March 31st. With our official hiking season running from the start of May through the end of October our window for visiting is basically just the month of April unless it shows up on our actual schedule. (My previous visits were in April, May and July.)

The forecast was for a dry, partly cloudy morning with a chance of showers starting after 11am. There was however a frost advisory, so I was expecting a chilly outing. As I pulled out of our garage I was encouraged to see the start of what looked to be a beautiful sunrise. As the crow flies the refuge is a mere 8 miles from home, but it lies in a valley while we are on a hill. As I drove down the hill toward the highway I quickly realized that low lying clouds were camped out in the valley and a solid bank of fog greeted me at the Baskett Butte Trailhead.

The fog made my choice of whether to visit the viewing platform atop Baskett Butte now or on the way back easy, so when I came to the Rich Guadagno Memorial Loop I veered right.

I had a rough idea of where all I was hoping to go on this visit and now that I knew I was saving the viewpoint for later the plan came more into focus. I would follow the Memorial Loop to the Inter-Tie Trail and take that trail to the Moffitti Morgan Loop Trail. I planned on hiking that loop clockwise to visit Moffitti Marsh and then Morgan Lake before taking the Inter-Tie Trail back to the Memorial Loop.
There were a few buttercups blooming in the grass and not much else along this side of the Memorial Trail.

A lone strawberry blossom.

The Inter-Tie Trail was a wet and muddy affair. I could hear a lot of birds in the surrounding trees but couldn’t make any of them out unless they flew right in front of me.

I went left here which got me out of the slick mud but onto even wetter grass.

There hadn’t been a lot to get excited about as I made my way along the loop until I got close to Moffitti Marsh which was full of water from our wet Spring.
Coming up on the marsh which is just on the other side of the dip in the road.

Two rabbits trying to decide if they were going to keep eating grass or race off into the blackberry bushes.

While there were a decent number of ducks in the water at the marsh getting pictures or even making out what types they were was difficult due to the fog.

Ring-necked ducks

I think this is a marsh wren.

Beyond the marsh the trail follows a fence line along some farmland, and it was along this stretch that the I got the first sign that the fog might be starting to lift.

By the time I’d reached Smithfield Road, where the trail turns right, I was in a fairly clear pocket which was fortunate because there were several different types of birds in the area.

I think the 2nd goose in from the right is a cackling goose while the others are Canada geese. It’s a bit smaller and the white patch is shaped differently.

Swallows

California quail

Just before reaching the Smithfield Road Trailhead I passed a bustling wetland with northern shovelers and cinnamon teals.

Cinnamon teals

Northern shoveler drake

Northern shoveler females

Signs at the Smithfield Road Trailhead.

My break from the fog was short lived and I found it again at Morgan Lake.

There were a lot of ducks out on the lake but again they were not easy to make out.
Buffleheads

Ring-necked duck

Possibly a lesser scaup.

Mallards

The trail along the swollen lake was basically flooded which made for a cold trudge through the grass and mud. It turned out to be worth it though as shortly after passing the lake I spotted a herd of elk on a hillside that we’d seen elk on before.

The only bull I could pick out.

When the loop trail made a 180 degree turn to begin climbing back toward the Inter-Tie Trail I refocused on looking for wildflowers. I quickly spotted a few fawn lilies.

My focus bounced between the numerous birds that were singing and flitting about in the trees and looking for more flowers as I continued uphill.
Robin

Bench overlooking Morgan Lake

Morgan Lake from the bench.

Spotted towhees

A lot of geese way below the trail.

I took the Inter-Tie Trail back to the Rich Guadagno Memorial Loop where I veered right to finish it and visit the viewing platform.

I started seeing a lot of toothwort on this side of the loop.

More fawn lilies too.

The viewing platform on Baskett Butte to the right.

One of several western meadowlarks (Oregon’s state bird) on the butte.

American kestral

A better look at the yellow on the meadowlarks.

View from the platform.

I called an audible at the viewpoint and decided to finally follow the small but obvious path down the SE side of Baskett Butte. I wasn’t sure exactly where it came out but I suspected that it came out somewhere along Coville Road. If my suspicion was correct then I planned on following Coville Road south to the Cackler Marsh Trail, one that I hadn’t hiked before.
Sign along the path.

More fawn lilies.

The path leading down toward Coville Road. The outhouse at the Baskett Butte Trailhead is on the left below.

Baskett Butte from below.

Sure enough the path ended at Coville Road a very short distance from the outhouse. I turned south (right) on the road and followed it 0.2-miles to a gate at the start of the Cackler Trail.

The trail is simply a dike road that leads to the refuge HQs.

The headquarters is to the left of the road on the far side of South Slough.

I followed this trail to the end of the water before turning around. There were a lot of ducks, geese, and blackbirds around.

Also a bunch of American coots.

Northern shovelers

Buffleheads

Red-winged blackbird

Yellowlegs (probably lesser)

Baskett Butte (left) from my turn around point.

On the way back to the trailhead I did spot a lone ruddy duck dozing along the shore.

The ruddy duck woke up after all the American coots headed off.

Savannah sparrow

One more American kestral

My outing came in at 6.6 miles with a little over 300′ of elevation gain. It turned out to be a nice morning after the early fog and by the end I had some views of the snow in the Coast Range.

Hopefully actual Spring weather is just around the corner because our hiking season sure is. The snow pack is currently well above average which is great, but we are ready for some sunshine. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Baskett Slough 2023

Tags Baskett Butte, Baskett Slough Wildlife Refuge, Cackler Trail, elk, geese, hiking, Inter-Tie Trail, Moffiti Marsh, Moffitti Marsh Trail, Moffitti Morgan Loop Trail, Morgan Lake, Morgan Lake Trail, Oregon, Rich Guadagno Memorial Loop Trail, Ruddy Duck, Smithfield Road Trailhead, Western Meadowlark, Willamette Valley

Corvallis Hiking Oregon Willamette Valley

Finley Wildlife Refuge Loop – 4/14/2021

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date April 15, 2021
7 Comments on Finley Wildlife Refuge Loop – 4/14/2021

A day after visiting the Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge (post) I headed out to the William L. Finely National Wildlife Refuge for another attempt at spotting wildlife. Heather once again was working so I was on my own again. We had done two previous hikes here, one in 2017 visiting the Cabell Marsh and hiking the Woodpecker and Mill Hill Loops and the other in 2020 starting near Pigeon Butte. My plan was to combine most of those two hikes and add a few new short stretches to make a big loop through the refuge starting from the Woodpecker Loop Trailhead. One item to note is that some of the refuge is closed from November 1st through March 31st making this loop impossible during the seasonal closure.

The refuge is open from dawn to dusk and I arrived at the trailhead just as the Sun was beginning to rise behind Mt. Jefferson.

From the Woodpecker Loop Trailhead I walked down to the refuge road and followed it to the left back to the Cabell Barn then turned right on a road at a season trail sign for the Cabell Marsh Overlook. I followed the roadbed to the Cabell Lodge and past the overlook down to Cabell Marsh.
Mt. Hood from the refuge road

The Three Sisters from the road

Yellow paintbrush

Cabell Barn

img src=”https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51116225393_9feb61f994_c.jpg” width=”800″ height=”600″ alt=”IMG_1860″>Cabell Lodge

Rabbit at the lodge

Cabell Marsh Overlook

White crowned sparrows

Deer in a field near Cabell Marsh

Cabell Marsh (the marsh had been drained when we visited in 2020)

I slowly walked along the dike at the marsh using binoculars to try and identify how many different ducks were out on the water.
Norther shovelers

American coots

Ring-necked ducks

Buffleheads

Black pheobe

American wigeons

IMG_1915_stitch Cabell Marsh

Canada geese

Wood duck, ring-necked ducks and a pied billed grebe

More northern shovelers

Ring-necked ducks

Green winged teal

Robin

At a junction on the SW end of the Marsh I stayed left following a roadbed past a huge flock of geese and some ponds to a junction with the Pigeon Butte Trail.

Killdeer

Red-winged blackbird

Junction with the Pigeon Butte Trail (grassy track heading uphill)

Originally I had planned on skipping the half mile trail to the top of Pigeon Butte but it was a beautiful morning and it had been too cloudy to see much on our hike in 2020 so I turned uphill an tagged the summit before returning to my originally planned loop.
Tortoiseshell butterfly

Spotted towhee serenade

Bewick’s wren

Madrone

Mourning dove

Camas blooming near the summit

View from Pigeon Butte

Scrub jay spotted on the way down.

One of the “blue” butterflies, maybe a silvery blue

Acorn woodpecker

When I got back down to the junction I continued south on the Pigeon Butte Trail to a junction at a pond below Cheadle Barn.
Looking back at Pigeon Butte, the yellow paintbrush was starting its bloom on the hillside.

Instead of heading for the barn and the Cheadle Marsh Trail which we had used on our 2020 visit I went right following a roadbed to Bruce Road across from the Field 12 Overlook.
Looking back at Pigeon Butte and the Cheadle Barn

Western bluebird

Bruce Rd and a sign for the overlook.

Swallows at the overlook

Mary’s Peak and Pigeon Butte from the overlook.

Mary’s Peak (post)

I then walked west on Bruce Road to the trailhead for the Beaver Pond and Cattail Pond Trails passing the Mitigation Wetland along the way. I paused at the wetland to watch a great blue heron and egret along with a number of ducks in.
Ground squirrel on Bruce Rd.

Sparrows

Western bluebird

Mitigation Wetland

Egret

heron flying by the egret

Northern shoveler

Green winged teals

Trailhead off of Bruce Road

I turned off of Bruce Road at the trailhead and followed the grassy track to a fork where I veered left on the Beaver Pond Trail. This trail led briefly through the woods before arriving at the Beaver Pond where I startled a heron and a few ducks but an egret and a few other ducks stuck around.
Ground squirrel

Entering the woods

Giant white wakerobin

Fairybells

Startled heron

Egret and a cinnamon teal pair and maybe an American wigeon

As I was watching the egret I noticed something else in the water but I wasn’t sure if it was an animal or a log/rock in disguise. Even with binoculars I could decide but after looking at the pictures it was in fact a nutria that appeared to be napping.

The egret finally flew off and I continued on to a junction just beyond the pond where I turned left heading slightly uphill toward the Refuge Headquarters and the Mill Hill Loop.

Candyflower

At a signed 4-way junction I followed a pointer for the Mill Hill Trail to the left but not before I checked out a patch of pink along the trail straight ahead.

The pink turned out to be shooting stars.

I hiked the Mill Hill Loop (which led back to the junction right past the shooting stars) and then turned left on the Intertie Trail. The Mill Hill Loop was full of surprises with a number of different wildflowers blooming and a turtle sighting. The turtle was on a log in a wetland quite a bit below a bench along the trail and I only spotted it with the help of the binoculars but that counts.
Iris

Bleeding heart

One of many fairy slippers

It took some work to get the camera to stop focusing on the brush in the foreground.

Buttercups

Violets

Fawn lilies

Back at the junction and onto the Intertie Trail

I followed the Intertie Trail to the Woodpecker Loop ignoring side trails to the Refuge Headquarters.

Service berry

The Woodpecker Loop

I turned left opting to head uphill on a slightly longer route back to my car so that I could check out the view from a hilltop viewing structure.
Norther flicker along the Woodpecker Loop

Amphibian pond and interpretive kiosk.

Viewing structure

Mt. Jefferson

The Three Sisters

I watched a pair of raptors chase each other around but couldn’t get a clear enough view to tell what kind they were (maybe Cooper’s hawks?).

This was the best shot I could get at 40x zoom with the sun in front of me.

After accepting that a clearer picture wasn’t possible I left the shelter and hiked downhill to my waiting car. While I only passed two other hikers on the trails there were a number of folks at the trailhead either just arriving or getting ready to leave. My loop with the mile detour up and down Pigeon Butte came in at 11.3 miles. The great thing about Finley is the diversity it offers with forest, woodlands, marshes and fields each supporting different plants and wildlife. The possibility of long, medium and short hikes is also nice. The one drawback is that there is a lot of poison oak in the area but they keep the trails wide enough that it really isn’t much of a problem.

Happy Trails!

Flickr: Finley Wildlife Refuge Loop