Photo by Adam Sawyer
Located in Portland’s Washington Park, the Hoyt Arboretum is home to over 1,000 species of trees and plants from all over the world. There are 21 miles of hiking trails spread out over 185 acres. The manicured paths take you through groups of trees, including larch, spruce, oak, and even sequoia.
Visiting the Arboretum is free, and the visitor’s center is staffed with highly knowledgeable volunteers. There is a research library, and an assortment of free maps and brochures are available 24 hours a day. Here you can find self guided tour maps that include a 1-mile, barrier-free trail, as well as 2-mile and 4-mile hike options. The 4-mile map has a complete outline of all of the Arboretum trails, so your distance and route choices are limitless.
The research library holds enough information to fill up a parental lifetime, but the really fun stuff can be found on the children’s activity map. The front side of the Meet the Trees map outlines some of the walking tours that kids might find particularly enjoyable. Each described route lists the trees to look out for along the way, as well as some cool facts about each tree.
“If you pet the needles of a noble fir, it will release a fragrant aroma,” I said to my eight year old.
She replied, “No way! Let me try!”
“Did you know that Native Americans used the bark of the western red cedar for diapers?”
“Come on dad, that’s not true.”
“Oh, but it is. Rub the bark—no splinters.”
The back of the Meet the Trees map has a tree word search, a word scramble, and an arbor-based scavenger hunt where kids try to identify different trees based on leaves and bark.
The Hoyt Arboretum is open year-round. In fact, there are new plants and trees in bloom every month of the year, making any day a good day to see the trees with the family.
-Adam Sawyer
Photos by Adam Sawyer
