5.6 miles of hiking • 250' elevation gain •
Let me start out by saying I'm a dog person and have a fine older one at home. This is a very nice park but there are way too many dogs off leash that shouldn't be. I have nothing against dogs off leash that stay with their owners, but I didn't appreciate the dog that jumped up and nailed me in the groin, or the dog that was barking loudly and moving toward me aggressively. I even said something to the owner of the barking dog and she said the dog was very nervous with people she doesn't know, and I asked her if the dog was a threat or I should defend myself. She also had two other dogs with her that were roaming around. That said, most of the dogs were just happy go lucky, and had friendly wagging tails, and many owners still had their dogs on leashes. The majority of the dogs were on the western side of the park and near the Sandy River area and the east side of the park consisted mostly of hikers (at least on this particular day). I also met a group of school kids and teachers that were very friendly. There are some nice views of the Sandy River and the north side of the park has a nice riparian restoration area. I knew this was a popular off leash (except for one trail) dog park but didn't realize how popular and crowded it was, although it is a huge park. You may want to think twice about bringing your dog unless you desire you and/or your dog to have plenty of interactions. Oh, and there was one nasty skirmish between some dogs that I quickly walked away from!
