Exercise – Build Japanese Garden in Oregon US

Park Features:

Parking: Pay $5 at machine for a day pass
Restroom: at Parking
Distance: 5.3 miles
Moving time: 1 hr 30 mins with a lot of break for pictures and lunch
Visit Time: 4-5 hrs
Website: https://smithrock.com/
Google Map: https://goo.gl/maps/3y3SRW9Fc5W5enC8A

Park Highlight Picture:

Story:

My favorite Oregon State Park

Smith Rock State Park Map

Rock from Parking Lot

Misery Ridge Trail Head

Hiked up to the first milestone.

Looking down – parking lot was found.

Tree on top

A couple of climbers were going up the Red Wall.

They reached the top!!!

The same climbers were going down through a rope from the top. Very challenging!!! This picture was taken from the other side of Red Wall.

Pray

Going down was scary. Not good for knee.

Going back was not as bad as the beginning. It was very peaceful.

ROCKHARD – hiking & Rock Climbing Gear, Ice Cream, and Smith Rock Sticker shop

This is the Strava Log – 5.22 miles, 1hr 26 mins Moving Time

Exercise, Travel

Explore a New Park #11: Painted Cove Trail, Mitchell Oregon

June 20, 2019July 4, 2019 green scientist

This is a hidden gem in the Painted Hills.

Park Feature

Distance: 0.3 miles
Difficulty: Very easy
Route Type: Loop
Parking: Free
Website: https://www.oregonhikers.org/field_guide/Painted_Cove_Loop_Hike
Google Map: https://goo.gl/maps/bGQawxRkkVxHmNAN7

Park Highlight Picture

This small trail is part of big John Day Fossil Beds National Monument and the Painted Hills.

Driving on a unpaved road next to Painted Hills

Small Rock in the middle

Beautiful Painted Hill – looks like art

This trail only took us 30 mins, but it was very comfortable. Not many people were there, so we had enough time to take pictures and enjoy the art in nature.

If you like this post, this link is our park tour archive. Park Tour

Exercise, Park Tour

Explore a New Park #10: Noble Woods Park, Hillsboro Oregon

June 19, 2019June 21, 2019 green scientist

This park is located in the middle of a city called Hillsboro, Oregon. There is a very nice trail and creek surrounded by trees in residential area. This is a nice place for taking a dog for a walk.

Park Features:

Restroom: Yes
Parking: Free
Distance: about 1 mile
Pet Friendly: Yes
Google Map: https://goo.gl/maps/fPwYKJCN1eT4FzX88

Park Highlight Picture:

If you like this post, here is park tour archive. Park Tour

Exercise, Park Tour

Explore a New Park #9: Mosier Plateau Trail in Mosier Oregon

June 16, 2019June 16, 2019 green scientist

Park Features:

Restroom: No – need to use restrooms from nearby stores.
Parking: Free Street Parking
Distance: 2.3 miles
Time: 2 hrs and 30 mins
Waterfall: Yes
Swimming: Yes
Park Website: https://www.oregonhikers.org/field_guide/Mosier_Plateau_Hike
Google Map: https://goo.gl/maps/MMsfuCeHNdFhVS9b7

Flowers

Waterfalls and swimming hole

There was a cemetery in the middle of the hiking trail.

We saw a horse while we were hiking. This town is a peaceful. Only 480 people live in Moises, Oregon.

On the way to the top, there were switchbacks and stairs were build nicely (evenly spaced), which helped us hike up easily rather than hiking on dirt.

This is the scenery from the view point on top. You can see Columbia River and highway 84 where we drove from.

Another view point was near the cliff 20 mins hike from the top. It was very windy but the view was gorgeous. The picture below is towards East Oregon.

The picture below is towards West (Portland).

To respect the trail…

Exercise

Grateful Dad Half Marathon, Portland Oregon

June 15, 2019June 16, 2019 green scientist

Race day was June 15 Saturday, 2019

7:30AM Packet Pickup

The parking was limited, so I had to do a street parking. There were a plenty of spots on street.

Start Position: https://goo.gl/maps/8NnmBExAhLjm56Wb9

event website: https://terrapinevents.com/event/grateful-dad-half-marathon/

My goal for this race is run a half marathon not at too fast pace for me but finish strong at the end because I was a little sick. It has been either too hot or cold this week.

Course Map – The course was very similar to Hop Hop Marathon in last April. Running along Columbia River and Portland Airport. The turnaround place for the half marathon was almost at the same spot.

Registration, Bib pick up and shops were close to each other. There was a huge line for toilets before the race.

8:30AM Half Marathon Start

This was the finish line.

Chill out after the race.

Exercise

Hop Hop Half Marathon, Portland Oregon

June 14, 2019June 14, 2019 green scientist

This was a half marathon event in April 20, 2019 near Columbia River and Portland International Airport in April 2019.

It was a relatively small marathon event for Easter. The event was managed by Foot Traffic, which is a local running shoes and gear company in North West area.

Race website: https://foottraffic.us/hop-hop-half/

This picture was the start and finish line.

It was a little cold weather.

The course map shows running around the PDX airport and along Columbia River.

Screen Shot 2014-11-05 at 3.55.57 PM

This picture below was taken while I was running along Portland International Airport, which was cool. I saw airplanes taking off and landing.

Here was the finish line.

After race event.

Finishers got a free glass of hop to drive and take the glass home.

Exercise, Travel

Explore a New Park No. 8 : Forest Park (Oregon Zoo to Burnside Rd) in Portland, Oregon

June 13, 2019June 13, 2019 green scientist

Here is the run after work. I ran on Wildwood trail. Today was another sunny day, so it was easy to get thirsty while running. The forest definitely helped cool down the temperature a little compared to running on concrete in a city.

Entrance to Wildwood trail!

Wildwood trail is a very famous trail for runners.

Unfortunately, the trail to pass the Burnside road all the way to Pittock Mansion was closed. So, I just ran on concrete a little to see traffic jam on Burnside Road and came back to Oregon Zoo. Good news is they are building a bridge over the Burnside Road according to this website. https://www.portlandpf.org/footbridge-over-burnside-construction-updates-1

This looks like we lose some of the uphill challenges 😛

Exercise, Travel

Explore a New Park No. 7: Bullards Beach State Park, Bandon, OR

June 10, 2019June 10, 2019 green scientist

Here is an Oregon State Park in Bandon along the Oregon Coast. 30 minutes away from Coos Bay, Oregon. Bandon was the hub for shipping between Portland, Oregon and San Francisco since 1800.

The lighthouse was built in 1896 and still in good shape. Inside the lighthouse, there is a gift shot and park rangers were working there.

Park features

Restroom: yes
Gift Shop: yes at the lighthouse
lots of parking
picnic area: yes
beach access: yes
No entrance fee

Park Tour Archive: Park Tour

Exercise, Travel

Explore a New Park No. 6: Mingus Park, Coos Bay, Oregon

June 9, 2019June 9, 2019 green scientist

This park gave me a surprise. The park has a trail on one side and large pond with bridges on the other side. There is a Japanese garden and very well maintained.

Park Features: