Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
8 CHAPMAN SCHOOL TO LEIF
ERIKSON DRIVE: SWIFT WORK
BOUNDARIES: NW Vaughn St., NW 23rd Ave., NW Overton St., NW Cornell Rd.,
Forest Park
DISTANCE: 2 miles, with option for longer hike
DIFFICULTY: Easy, with option for strenuous
PARKING: Free on street
PUBLIC TRANSIT: TriMet Bus 15 (NW 25th Ave. and Thurman St.)
This walk, in an out-of-the-way little pocket of Portland, gives you the option for a
longer hike into the forest at the end, depending on your stamina, interest, and fitness
level. During late summer and fall, the route includes one of the city's most other-
worldly and fascinating phenomena: the swooping and swirling bedtime rituals of the
flock of Vaux's swifts that roost at Chapman Elementary School. (You can watch
them most evenings from late August through September, depending on the weather
and the restlessness of the birds. Until you've seen it, it's hard to appreciate what a
cool thing this is, but trust us, it's worth the effort.)
Any time of year, this is a part of Northwest Portland that may not get much press but
rewards exploration; one could describe it as “polished industrial.” Springing up
along Thurman and Upshur Streets are the offices of creative-class types—graphic de-
signers, architects, photographers, and video-production workers—mixed in with the
comfortably established residential neighborhood full of old leafy trees, wooden bun-
galows, and shiny new apartment buildings. Looming over all of this is the landmark
Montgomery Park office building, whose red-neon sign is visible from most parts of
Portland. The proximity of regular folks, creative industrial workers, and untamed
forest makes this area an appealing section of town to wander around in.
Start at the corner of NW 23rd Pl. (not 23rd Ave.) and Thurman St.,
where you have no fewer than three fine choices for loading up on picnic
supplies: St. Honoré Bakery, home of authentic French-style sandwiches
and achingly beautiful pastries; Food Front Cooperative Grocery, a
community-owned market of almost Portlandia -level earnestness, with
organic produce and a gourmet deli; and Kenny & Zuke's Bagelworks,
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