I’m a beginner hiker and I wish I had such a list from a *true beginner* when I first got started hiking in Oregon. So here goes…my top 5 hikes around Oregon! 💪🏽
- Falls Creek Falls – Easy hike with a beautiful falls, great drive
- Cape Horn – Views of gorge are amazing! Great for a picnic!
- Tamanawas – Should not be missed!
- Smith Rock – Challenging because of the elevation gain/steepness
- Wallowas – Can be challenging, longish for beginners
Falls Creek Falls @ Columbia River Gorge
An easy hike with a beautiful waterfall at the end.
I don’t see this hike highlighted anywhere on the internet, but it’s a fantastic hike. Most folks I know get started going up to Mirror Lake, or top of Multnomah Falls. These are amazing as well and should absolutely be experienced, but they’re crowded and don’t always have picturesque views throughout. I found Falls Creek Falls hike to have calming and beautiful forest and creek views most of the way, it’s short enough if you’re still building up stamina, and the falls are gorgeous!
Type: Out and Back
Miles: Approx 4 miles total
Difficulty: Easy – casual hikers can do this hike and not feel like they’re dying.
Additional Notes:
-The waterfall is really neat, though there isn’t much space to hang around and have a snack/picnic. Plan to see the waterfall, take some pics, and turn back around.
-The drive to the trailhead is gorgeous in the fall
Cape Horn @ Columbia River Gorge
This one is an adventure, with amazing views of the Columbia River Gorge.
Type: Loop
Miles: Approx 8 miles total
Difficulty: Moderate to Difficult, based on time of year. During the rainier months sections of this loop can get washed out. When done during early fall, this hike is *stunning*.
Additional Notes:
-Easy parking! Pretty big parking lot.
As this is technically a loop you can choose the direction you want to do it, we quite enjoyed going up the mountain first (i.e. turn right at the fork). When done this way, you go up the mountain and experience beautiful views of the gorge, there are a few spots to put down a picnic blanket and enjoy a bite while overlooking the gorge.
Then you make your way down, down, down (Alexa, play “Montero”)…descending past the main highway and going closer to the water itself. Here, things can get a bit more challenging. There are a few spots where we had to scramble, and the rocks weren’t quite as sturdy. The last half mile is walking on a paved road through a field, which I was fine with because I was beat.
I was sore all of the next day.
Tamanawas Falls @ Mt. Hood
The hike I want to keep going on over and over again. I can’t do a post about my Top 5 Hikes around Oregon without mentioning it. It’s easy to get to, not all that difficult (for a slow poke like me – I was breathless in some sections), and the falls are beautiful! We went during the dead of winter, and the falls juxtaposed with soft snow was breathtaking.
Type: Out and back
Miles: Approx 3.5 miles total
Difficulty: Easy to Moderate – provided you have microspikes!
Do not attempt this hike in the winter without the right equipment. We bought our microspikes at REI and I’m pretty sure they saved our lives.
Additional Notes:
-N/A
Smith Rock @ Bend
Disclaimer: We haven’t done the famous Misery Loop here. Sure the name doesn’t help, but we went close to winter when there was a lot of ice and we didn’t have the right equipment to do the steep sections. Therefore, my recommendation is solely based on the 2-ish miles we hiked into the loop.
Amazing. On a quiet day, with the snow fall, you can hear your breath and it can be a spiritual experience (it was for me).
What’s more, learning about how Smith Rock formed reminds of the earth’s amazing creative and destructive power.
Type: Out and back (that’s what we did, but can be a loop if you want to do Misery Loop)
Miles: We did 2ish miles, Misery Ridge is 6 miles)
Difficulty: Moderate to Difficult.
Whether you decide to do the whole loop or not, getting to the river is steep – without microspikes and poles in the winter, it is extremely slippery. In the summer, I have heard it gets extremely hot and hikers can faint due to dehydration and heat. I’d recommend taking extra care when doing this hike, look on the Smith Rock website and make sure you’re prepared.
Additional Notes:
-For beginner hikers, this can be challenging one. It was for me! And I didn’t even do it all! But I do know that the experience of going down to the river had a profound effect on me – in a good way.
Hurricane Creek @ Wallowas
I had been wanting to visit this part of Oregon for a very long time. It’s really something else – even the drive to Wallowas is picturesque and the lofty mountains left me in awe.
The Hurricane Creek trail is a 19 mile hike, but you can do the first 3.5 miles to reach Slick Rock falls and turn back. This is what we did.
Let me tell you…this was a short hike but a challenge! The elevation left me more breathless than I had anticipated! I had to stop and take a breath every 20 steps.
The fact that this hike isn’t very busy, has a clear trail, and the tall mountains are sooo stunning makes it a favorite. There’s a reason they call the Wallowas “The Alps of Oregon”.
Type: Out and back to Slick Rock Falls
Miles: 7 Miles total
Difficulty: Moderate to Difficult. Elevation makes this one particularly difficult.
Additional Notes:
-Lots of butterflies summer to fall!
-Random big bugs were on the trail. Upon close observation, we found that they had stingers on their backs! It was pretty terrifying. Look out for them on the path and stay away!
-We think we heard rattle snakes. I’d be remiss if I didn’t note that. 
And that’s it! Those are my top 5 hikes around Oregon! Have you tried any of these? Do you have any other recommendations? Share it with ya girl!
Neha Neelwarne 
Leave a comment