Portland is a very green city, which has been able to maintain, as our guide says so well, « forests at the gates of the city ». And it's true that there's not much distance to find the forest, including Forest Park, which overlooks the city and the Willamette and Columbia rivers.
Forest Park is a 2000 ha forest, one of the largest urban forests in the country.
The first native American stands are very old. The first European explorers arrived in 1806, with the Lewis and Clarke expedition. Half a century later, most Natives had to leave, leaving room for settlers.
In 1903, the sons of Frederick Law Olmsted (also he!) proposed to make it a forest park, an idea that would materialize in 1948.
It is a very different landscape from the East. There, upon arriving, we had been struck by the size of the trees and the important place they occupy, but without being familiar, the landscape was not so different from what we could know in Europe. But around Portland, the extremely rainy winter climate makes the forests take a completely different measure.
During our first walk, we were very marked by the exuberance of vegetation, the intensity of green, ferns everywhere, and the amount of mosses covering trees.
Many trails crisscross the forest, very hilly. The fallen trees are left in place and if one of two is on the trail, a section is drawn to leave a passage. The trunks are huge and we are always amazed to see these big trees on the ground, we feel very small.
We have encountered owls, picks and other birds that we have not identified.
At the very beginning of Forest Park is the Hoyt Arboretum, crisscrossed by many trails, where you can admire plant collections from all over the world, and beautiful specimens of sequoia, in the foretaste of Redwoods Park.
At the turn of a trail, we came across the volcanoes of the area: Mount St Helens, Mount Rainier and Mount Hood. Very impressive, as these volcanoes peak at high altitude and are snowy, they are characteristic of the Portland region's physiognomy.
In the park there is also an ornithological reserve, where we have seen peaks, blue geese, various unidentified passerines and American owls.
Portland has many parks in the city itself, including one that has marked us by its special character, Mount Tabor Park. It is an ancient volcano located in the heart of the city. The top is abrased but the slopes are steep, the walking paths are very steep in places. It is a pleasant park, with stunning views of the city below. Several tanks were built between the end of 19e century and the beginning of 20e, to supply the city with drinking water, this for more than a century. They are now part of the heritage and are being restored.
When we went there, we came across a trio of musicians playing under the trees. It wasn't a concert, but a few people were sitting in the grass to share this moment a little suspended. It was traditional folk music, songs played by small bands like them.
