Trails in the Corvallis Area
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$6.uu A Guide to Trails in the Corvallis Area Corvallis \ kor-val'-lis \ n : a remarkable little town nestled in the eastern foothills of a rather unremarkable range of mountains on a small blue planet far out in the unfashionable end of the Western Spiral arm of the galaxy. The planet is called Earth, for no apparent reason The mountains are known as the Coast Range, so named because of their proximity to the coast -- isn't that clever? The town is remarkable for lwo reasons. The first is the people, who are among the most highly educated human populations in the galaxy. One unfortunate side effect of being so highly educated is that the people must thoroughly examine every subject, no matter how simple, before arriving at a decision. Say, for example, they should want to know the sum of 2+2. First they must debate the existence of the first 2. If it is determined reasonable that this 2 exists, then the second is given equal study. Satisfied that both 2s actually exist, and are capable of being added, they will then launch into a deep investigation of whether or not addition is the desirable method of arriving at the sum. Having decided that addition is proper, they then perform the task, arrive at an answer, and hire a consultant to check the results. The consultant then reports that their answer is correct, but that they could have accomplished the same result by shifting the first 2 left two places and then dividing by the second. Immediately after the people proudly announce their answer, the local chapter of the Knights Who Say No publish a flyer describing in great detail why the answer is wrong, and file a lawsuit requiring the City to correct the mistake. Eventually the people tire of waiting for their government to find an answer, and on a sunny spring morning a group of volunteers gathers, solves the problem in a few minutes over coffee and croissants, and goes out for a hike to enjoy the day. The other remarkable thing about this particular small town is the extensive network of trails that have appeared in the surrounding hills, fields and marshes. The people of Corvallis spend a lot of time hiking. A Guide to Trails in the Corvallis Area Phillip R. Hays Copyright O 1993 by Phillip R. Hays All rights reserved including those to reproduce this book or parts thereof, in any form, without permission in writing from the publisher. First printing April 1993 Published by Phillip R. Hays Cowallis, Oregon A Guide to Trails in the Corvallis Area is a sequel to the earlier book A Guide to Hiking in the Corvallis Area (1986) by Phillip R. Hays Table of Contents Introduction ........................................................................................................... 1 Share the Trails ............................................................................................... 4 How To Read A Map ............................................................................................6 Hazards of the Trail ............................................................................................. 7 Poison Oak ................................................................................. 7 Stinging Nettle ................................................................................ 9 Stinging Insects ...............................................................................10 Ticks (Lyme Disease) .....................................................................10 Giardia ............................................................................................ 10 City Parks .............................................................................................................. 11 Avery Park .................................................................................................13 Wildflower Trail ............................................................................. 13 Bald Hill Park ............................................................................................15 East Side Loop ................................................................................18 West Side Loop ...............................................................................19 Chip Ross Park ......................................................................................... 22 Chip Ross Loop ......................................................................... 23 Marys River Park ....................................................................................... 24 Arboretum Trail .............................................................................. 24 Walnut Park ............................................................................................... 26 Camas Prairie Trail .........................................................................26 Willamette Park ......................................................................................... 28 Willamette Park Trail .................................................................... 28 The Unseen Forest ..................................................................................... 30 County and Regional Recreation Areas ................................................................ 31 Alsea Falls Recreation Area ...................................................................... 33 Alsea Falls Trail .............................................................................. 33 Clemens Park .............................................................................................35 Clemens Park Loop .........................................................................35 McDowell Creek Falls Park ....................................................................... 37 McDowell Creek Main Trail .......................................................... 38 McDowell Creek High Trail ........................................................... 39 Timber Management .................................................................................. 40 McDonald Forest .................................................................................................. 41 McDonald Forest Oak Creek Area ......................................................... 46 Oak Creek Loop .............................................................................. 47 First Growth Trail ........................................................................... 48 Oak Creek to Dimple Hill ............................................................... 49 McCulloch Peak Loop ....................................................................50 Jackson Creek Area ................................................................................... 51 Lewisburg Saddle to Dimple Hill ................................................... 54 Chip Ross Park to Dimple Hill via Horse Trail .............................. 55 ... 111 Dan's Trail from Chip Ross Park to Dimple Hill ............................ 56 Chip Ross Park to Lewisburg Saddle via RD610 ........................... 57 Alpha Trail ...................................................................................... 57 Soap Creek Area ........................................................................................ 60 Sulphur Springs Trail ...................................................................... 61 Soap Creek Loop ............................................................................ 62 Vineyard Mountain Area ........................................................................... 63 New and Old Growth Trails ........................................................... 66 What Is A Forest? ...................................................................... 68 Vineyard Hill Loop ......................................................................... 69 Peavy Arboretum ....................................................................................... 72 Section 36 Loop Trail ..................................................................... 73 Powder House Trail ........................................................................ 74 Forest Discovery Trail .................................................................... 75 Intensive Forest Management Trail ............................................. 76 New Trail ..................................................................................... 77 Woodlands Trail .............................................................................78 William L . Finley National Wildlife Refbge ........................................................ 79 Woodpecker Loop Trail .................................................................. 81 Mill Hill Trail ................................................................................. 82 Pond Loop Trail .............................................................................. 83 Cabell Marsh Loop Trail ................................................................ 84 Other Adventures ....................................................................................... 85 Bald Top ......................................................................................... 85 Muddy Creek to Pigeon Butte ................................................. 85 Gray Creek Swamp ......................................................................... 85 McFadden Marsh ............................................................................ 85 The Measure of the Beast .......................................................................... 86 Marys Peak ...........................................................................................................