Beazell Memorial Forest Hike
From Portland Hikers Field Guide
- Start point: Beazell Forest Trailhead
- End point: South Meadow
- Trail Log: Trail Log
- Hike Type: Loop
- Distance: 5.0 miles round trip
- Elevation gain: 400 feet guessing for now
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Seasons: All
- Family Friendly: Yes
- Backpackable:No
- Crowded: No
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Hike Description
Hike up a lovely stream with canopy views of this classic coast range forest.
Beazell Memorial Forest is Benton County's newest and largest park. It is a self-sustaining managed conservation forest, which will be occasionally thinned or logged to provide proceeds for park maintenance. Trails are open to hikers, bikers and horses year round.
From the parking area, head past the barn and cross the Plunkett Creek Bridge. Turn right into the Plunkett Creek Trail and head uphill on an old road through an alder forest. Spring brings the best wildflower viewing here with meadowrue, bleeding heart delphiniums and three different trillium species in the understory. After a mile, turn right and descend to the riparian area, crossing several feeder creeks on wooden bridges, then begin climbing southerly out of the ravine and enter the fir forest, managed for timber. You will skirt the edge of a clearcut/reprod area for a short time at the park's border, then re-enter the timberland on another old road.
The old road emerges onto a forested ridgetop with some huge Oregon White Oak trees. Turn south (left) on the next grassy road to skirt the south meadow, or head straight a bit further to the summit of the ridge and walk through some young fir trees to find the top of the meadow. This is a great spot for a family picnic with a view of Marys Peak. In late May-June, the meadow is filled with wild strawberries.
To continue on the loop, you can descend through the meadow, but the ground can be very uneven. At the bottom of the meadow, turn right onto the grassy road that will take you through the managed timber section back to the barn and parking lot.
Maps
- Maps: Hike Finder
- Aerial view of the trail from Benton County. Please note that the proposed connector trail on this map is now complete!
Trip Reports
- Search Trip Reports for Beazell Memorial Forest Hike
- Beazel Forest 3-11-08
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Related Discussions / Q&A
- Search Trail Q&A for Beazell Memorial Forest Hike
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More Links
Contributors
- CFM (creator)