Michael On Everything Else
Sandy River Trail
Voice Cellular Coverage: Good
Data Cellular Coverage: Good
Cellular Provider: Verizon
APRS coverage: Only from the road
This was the trail we were headed to when we got stuck in the snow. I’m glad we went back. The trail is nice. One great thing about this trail is it ends at a beach of the Sandy River. It would make for a great picnic spot we think.
I can see where parking could be limited. The north side of SE Gordon Creek Road is marked ‘no parking from May 1 - October 1.’ The same side of the road is also fenced off and marked private property.
The trailhead can be tricky to see as you drive by it. However, AllTrails has solid GPS coordinates for it. If you approach from the west as we did, you can confidently park on the south side of the road at the GPS coordinates and then find the trailhead marked by two blue, vertical uprights:
Something had a good meal right at the trailhead. One of the reviews on AllTrails mentioned evidence of a cougar. I think I saw coyote tracks. I definitely saw deer tracks produced by two different deer; one large, one small. But I didn’t see anything indicating the presence of a cougar. I don’t know what animal these bones belong to, but it was a decent size.
Many trails in Portland are well-established, even paved. Not this one. This one feels more wild and more like one is exploring the woods than taking a leisurely walk. There are stretches where the forest is quite dense. It’s relatively quiet, which is nice. We hiked it around 9:30a. We passed exactly one other hiker while out there. Other than that, we saw no one else.
