Find the top rated running trails in Bingen, whether you're looking for an easy short running trail or a long running trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a running trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
Beautiful Day, beautiful trail. The second section now goes 1.5 miles past the Viento Creek campground and ranger station.
Awesome, tall native grasses and flowers everywhere ever great landscaping along the industrial section and of course the mighty Columbia river and abundant wild life.
It's paved, it's short but sweet, keep in mind that the railroad IS active (not super active, I didn't see any trains on my particular trip), so use caution at crossings. It's within Battle Ground State Park. I went on a fall day and was tickled (and slightly saddened) to see a bunch of uneaten apples that had fallen off the trees in the area; hopefully some of the local wildlife got some tasty snacks out of them.
The ride from Hood river to Mosier is fabulous. The ride from Viento State park to Wyeth not as good because of proximity to I-84. Both feature impeccable road surface including 2019 constructed stretches of new road. But the Mosier leg is so special in terms of elevation and views Only 10 miles round trip there’s coffee in Mosier 1 mile past the end of the trail section. I’d you brave the surface streets you can make an60+ mile ride they say
I started at the Marina going West. Nice and flat at start with nice views of Marina. The Park further East would probably been nice but limited on time. Trail heads through industrial area but still nice cows of the Columbia River. Last part of trail is all uphill and head wind picked up. No problem with e-bike! Total 6 miles from marina.
The trail is currently closed beyond Capt Clark park while work is being completed on the National Wildlife Refuge. Length of trail is about 1.5 miles as of 8/22/22.
The trail segment is accessed from Battle Ground Lake state park. It is very short, less than a mile but with the state park nearby you could easily lengthen it. The trail itself is in excellent condition and especially if you have mobility issues, a nice little walk. It is mostly a shaded area and filled with wildflowers on both sides.
This ride will never be in the Rails-to-Trails Hall of Fame, but if you like a bit of an adventure, and can tolerate a wide variety of settings over a short period of time, give it a go!
I rode the length of the trail, starting and ending in Boring, and extended the ride a bit by crossing over the Willamette to Portland using the Iron Bridge.
Boring to Gresham, lush and green, few streets, very pleasant. About 7 miles in toward Portland, the side effects of America's struggle to provide adequate housing for those that desire it begin to show up: abandoned shopping carts, piles of trash, burn piles. The homeless camps from Mile 13 into about Mile 9 are ramshackle, creative, and sometime surprisingly high tech. Look close, and listen, and you'll see solar panels, hear generators running, and see discarded propane tanks. At no point did I encounter any hostility or aggression from the camp dwellers.
A bit farther down the trail (mile 8ish?) there is a discontinuity in the trail, and for possibly a mile you follow a tree-lined city street. If there were signs, I missed them, and was grateful to a bicycle riding couple that got me back on track.
Back on the path, a nice run into Portland, with a very pleasant section that parallels the river, popular with walkers, runners, bikers, twisting along the shoreline, dipping down for a bit onto a very cool pontoon supported metal pathway that is designed to adjust itself for changes in river level. There is one more on the street section here, but it is well marked/signed.
Turn around, head back, mild grade to climb, gaining maybe 600 feet over 15ish miles. Not hard. The street crossings come and go, and do require both caution and patience. With my slight extension to the other side of the river, 47 mies roundtrip.
So..excellent ride to cross off on your Rails-to-Trails list. Best approached with curiosity, patience, and acceptance of life styles that do not resemble your own. Didn't see many kids (some, but not many), and between the fairly heavy human traffic (skate boarders, in-line skaters, runners, walkers, etc.), the frequent street crossings and the sections that are impressively trashed out, I can see why many parents would choose a tamer adventure. Glad I did it (really!), don't feel the need to do it again any time soon.
This is a pleasant forested section, but it’s only about 2.5 miles one way from the parking in Cascade Locks to a very steep set of stairs that impedes access to the rest of the trail. If you had two people you could transport each bike up the stairs to continue the ride. I didn’t have anyone to help me and my bike is very heavy so I turned around. A note about parking: Park under the bridge in Cascade Locks, but don’t take the steep downhill road that leads you down to the railroad tracks. If you do turn around and go back to the parking lot. The trail start almost on the shoulder of the highway and then veers off into a peaceful wooded area
The trail and parking was open as of June 1, 2020 during Phase 2 of the Covid-19 situation. We rented bikes at Discover Bicycles in Hood River to ride the Historic Hwy bike path. We had a bike rack with us and we were staying in Mosier so we road the section from Mosier to Hood River (5 miles one way). This is an outstanding ride! Riding from Mosier to Hood River The trail is either uphill or level. Enjoy a picnic lunch and restrooms (flush toilets) and water at the Hood River parking lot. Riding to Mosier the trail is mostly downhill or level. Currently this is the best section of the trail to ride.
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