Knowledge you can walk. Read the idea below, then step up to the general, across to peers or down to the specific.
Physical
Forest Park
Forest Park is a large city park of mostly second-growth forest in the hills west of downtown Portland, Oregon.
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The idea
Forest Park is a public city park in the Tualatin Mountains, west of downtown Portland, Oregon. It stretches for more than 8 miles along hillsides overlooking the Willamette River. As of 2009 it covered more than 5,100 acres, which made it one of the largest urban forest reserves in the United States. Most of it is second-growth forest, with a few patches of old growth.
More than 80 miles of trails cross the park, including part of the Wildwood Trail, a segment of the city's 40-Mile Loop. More than 112 bird species and 62 mammal species use the park and its trees and shade-loving plants. About 40 inches of rain falls on the forest each year. Balch Creek has its own trout population, and Miller Creek supports sea-run fish such as salmon.
As early as the 1860s, civic leaders wanted a natural preserve in the woods near Portland. In 1903 a city park commission hired the Olmsted Brothers landscape firm to plan Portland's parks. The city gathered land through donations, transfers from Multnomah County and unpaid-tax foreclosures, then combined about 4,000 acres to create the reserve.
Check yourself
Question 1 of 3
In what year was Forest Park formally dedicated?
Composition
what it's made of
- Second-growth forest — Most of the park is second-growth forest, with a few patches of old growth.
- Trail network — More than 80 miles of trails, including part of the Wildwood Trail.
- Creeks — Small Willamette tributaries such as Balch Creek and Miller Creek.
- Wildlife — More than 112 bird species and 62 mammal species.
- Tualatin Mountains — The hills west of downtown where the park lies.
Connection
how it relates
Change
how and why it evolves
- Past
- Acting on a proposal by the City Club of Portland, the city formally dedicated Forest Park in 1948. In 2005, experts named threats to the park that included overuse, invasive plants, fire risk and a lack of money. In 2008, the Trust for Public Land ranked it 19th in size among the largest city parks in the United States.
- Now
- In 2024, the city opened a new park entrance and parking lot where St. Helens Road meets U.S. Route 30. In February 2025, the city approved a power line project that will clear 376 trees and remove two wetlands over 4.7 acres of the park.
- Next
- Keeping the forest healthy will likely depend on controlling invasive plants and finding steady money for maintenance.