Revision as of 22:52, 20 April 2014

View to Portland Airport, James Wood Hill Park (bobcat)

Trail up east side of Rocky Butte (bobcat)

Stone ramparts and old airway beacon, James Wood Hill Park (bobcat)

Nativity scene at The Grotto (bobcat)

Trail and road walk on Rocky Butte (bobcat)

• Start point: The Grotto Trailhead
• End point: Rocky Butte
• Trail Log:
• Hike Type: In and out
• Distance: 3.2 miles
• Elevation gain: 480 feet
• High Point: 612 feet
• Difficulty: Easy
• Seasons: All
• Family Friendly: Yes
• Backpackable: No
• Crowded: No, except at summit area

Hike Description

Rocky Butte, one of Portland's Boring volcanoes, lay in the direct path of the Bretz or Missoula Floods, some of the largest known on the planet, which blasted down the Columbia Gorge from what is now Montana over a period of about 2,000 years until about 13,000 B.C. The eastern face of the cinder cone was extensively eroded as the Portland area went under 400 feet of water. The west side of Rocky Butte, now known as the Alameda Ridge, became a collection of debris from hundreds of miles away. The northeast side of the butte also hosted a rock quarry, which gave rise to its current name; previous to this, it was known as Wiberg Butte. Stone from the quarry was used in the construction of the former Multnomah County Jail, located nearby and demolished to make way for the freeway. Cliff faces on the northeast side of the butte hold over 100 climbing routes, and bouldering practice can be enjoyed on the stone walls at the summit. The trail route described below crosses public lands belonging to state and city parks and the Oregon Department of Transportation.

Head out the exit to The Grotto parking lot and turn right on Skidmore Street, which parallels The Grotto. Pass the chapel, which sits atop administrative offices. Then pass the Skidmore Pump Station on your right. As the street rises from a depression scoured by swirling Bretz floodwaters, find a path that goes off into the woods of the freeway right-of-way. The Douglas-firs here are draped with ivy. Also common are big-leaf maple, cherry-laurel, holly and some western hemlock. Trails left lead back to Skidmore via a stunt bike jump course. Cliffs to the right were quarried for the blocks that shored the Rocky Butte Road and Hill Park in addition to the County Jail. Large mossy boulders lie jumbled among the maples. Come to the I-205 freeway sight barrier and go right, gently ascending with views of the busy freeway to the left and rocky, wooded cliffs to the right. Reach a junction. A trail makes a sharp right up the slope. This is the one you should take although there is another junction ten yards further on, with the left trail leading down to run along the freeway and the right trail leading up to the Schwingus - a climber's wall (Be aware that these woods also provide shelter for a few transient human "campers"). Ascend below moss-covered, licorice-ferned buttresses, passing a #8 on a tree, the lovely scene unfortunately marred by the roar of traffic. Come to a tunnel under Rocky Butte Road. You can bypass this and join the road a few yards later.

Across the way is the campus of the City Bible Church, with its domed retreat building. Climbers usually access the quarried cliffs from below the Bible Church using top-rope anchors. To reach the summit, you have to walk up the road about 3/4 mile, passing under power lines and more buildings on the CBC campus. Reach a junction for the loop around Joseph Wood Hill Park, with its layered retaining walls, decommissioned airway beacon (from the days when pilots navigated by sight at night) and red cinder gravel. You can see north to the airport, the river, and Mount Saint Helens; the Columbia Gorge is to the east and there is a splendid view of Mount Hood, especially at sunset. The buildings of downtown are visible, too, and then the West Hills. The park is named after the man who founded the Hill Military Academy, some of whose buildings still form part of the City Bible Church complex.

On the west side of the park, where Rocky Butte Drive descends on its western route (eventually through a switchback tunnel), stop to look at the WPA (Work Progress Administration) wall near the junction. A climber’s trail descends on both sides of this wall; you can reach the tunnel using this trail. Return the way you came or by making a loop using city streets.

The Grotto: Walk past the gift shop under a Douglas-fir canopy below wooded cliffs. You can see a trail map of The Grotto (National Sanctuary of Our Sorrowful Mother) showing a short trail below in the Douglas-fir woods and the well-manicured botanical garden is reached by an elevator up the cliff (There is a fee to use the elevator). From Thanksgiving to the end of December, this lower area will be all strung up for its Christmas Lights Festival (admission fee), so some pathways might be blocked off. The grotto itself contains a marble replica of Michelangelo’s Pietà. Farther back, there’s a visitor center and a chapel.

Fees, Regulations, etc.

• Dogs not permitted at The Grotto; keep on leash on Rocky Butte
• Open dawn to dusk

Maps

• Rock Climbing Map of Rocky Butte

Trip Reports

• Search Trip Reports for Rocky Butte Hike

• A Bunch of Boring Volcanoes
• Sometimes... (The Grotto and Rocky Butte)

Related Discussions / Q&A

• Search Trail Q&A for Rocky Butte Hike

Guidebooks that cover this hike

• Portland Hill Walks by Laura O. Foster
• Peaceful Places: Portland by Paul Gerald

More Links

• Joseph Wood Hill Park (Portland Parks)
• Rocky Butte Natural Area (Portland Parks)
• Rocky Butte Park (a.k.a. Joseph Wood Hill Park) (Zinester's Guide to Portland)
• Rocky Butte (Rockclimbing.com)
• Rocky Butte Quarry (Portland Rock Climbs)
• Rocky Butte, Portland, Oregon (USGS)
• The Boring Lava Field, Portland, Oregon (USGS)
• Rocky Butte, Oregon (The Columbia River: A Photographic Journey)
• Friends of Gateway Green
• The Grotto

Contributors

• bobcat (creator)