Rocky Butte Kicked My Butte
A Rocky Route
Whenever I set out on foot, I never set out with any fitness goals or athletic intentions; I just follow a map and follow where my heart takes me! That being said, I did walk more than I’ve ever walked in my entire life during the month of November 2022—a completely unintentional 160+ miles(?!)—with several days walking up to 10 miles.
Checking out Rocky Butte was one of those days, and boy did it kick my butte!
Let’s start with the route:
Take a bus north
Transfer to another bus east
Detour at The Grotto for a relaxing respite
Walk 2 miles to the top of Rocky Butte Natural Area
Because The Grotto and Rocky Butte are in the same part of Portland (Northeast), I decided to visit both on a lovely sunny day. A bus ride with one transfer brought me almost directly to The Grotto, a Catholic sanctuary nestled within and on top of a cliff. I’m an atheist, but visiting religious places always evokes a sense of wonder and magic for me. This shrine was so beautiful and I’d love to take the elevator to the top and view the gardens in the spring. I only spent an hour or so here, but I witnessed an adorable proposal, learned about our Sorrowful Mother, and felt at peace in this spiritual nature space.
Getting to my next stop didn’t provide any public transit routes, so I figured walking would be the most feasible way to venture forth. Little did I know 2 miles to Rocky Butte would indeed be rocky!
I followed Google maps through a residential neighborhood, where the journey started to get hilly along a winding, mountain-like road. Past a bible college with futuristic dome architecture, I followed the one road leading up (that I imagine would be treacherous at night with barely a guard rail preventing a steep fall). There were no sidewalks of course, but a few around the college assured me I was heading in the right direction. I didn’t know how long that road wound, but I was determined to climb to the summit and see Mt. Hood from this volcanic cone!
Even though it was a super windy day (and a little too cold for ascending any altitude!) I finally made it to the top, where there was plenty of parking and several people admiring a breathtaking view of Portland and beyond. The panoramic perspective Rocky Butte offers is absolutely worth the frozen fingers and sore muscles, though I would recommend visiting via car because a misstep could actually be perilous.
After I finished taking a million pictures and had my fill of the sublime like a Romantic poet moved to tears by this majestic mountain, I tried to determine a different route back that would get me to a nearby train station instead. Little did I know (again!) that descending would be rocky!
It took an hour and three miles down another artery not meant for pedestrians, on a cliffside lined with expensive houses, into a cute tunnel built in 1939, and through a much less wealthy neighborhood to reach the MAX station. I could have very easily taken the same route back rather than kept looking over my shoulder for cars, but where’s the fun in that? Here we love to walk around and find out (as safely as possible, of course)! Although the journey back was challenging without sidewalks and limited daylight, walking through peak fall foliage along a historical highway was truly enchanting.
Evaluating this trip on the WAFO (walk around and find out) rating system:
Safety: 5/10; steep drop-offs where there have been fatalities
Scenery: 11/10; stunning scenery (a potential alternative is checking out Powell Butte for a similar view)
Accessibility: 1/10; winding mountain road without sidewalks
Value: 7/10; for the price of a $2.50 bus fare I wouldn’t return on foot, but I’d visit again with a car
Until the next (mis)adventure!
– Walkaround N. Findout