Washington Park/Arlington Heights/Kings Hill Stairwalk
- Start: W Burnside and NW 24th Place (map)
- Bus: 15-NW 23rd or 20-Burnside to W Burnside and 23rd.
- Time: 45 minutes not including extra time to smell the Rose Garden's roses or have a picnic
Map
Point A Starting at 24th place, cross Burnside to a non-descript entrance to Washington Park (1). Take the small staircase on the right (2). Follow this combination of paths and staircases for a while (3). When you reach the painted white pole (4) go right and continue up the staircase. Be careful when passing the big tree: many steps have been displaced by its roots.
Just before you cross the first paved road (actually about a dozen steps before) turn right on an unpaved trail (5). Follow this path past a small staircase on your left and an abandoned building. The trail will finally spit you out on SW Wright Av at SW Tichner Dr (6).
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Point B
Turn right on SW Tichner and enter one of Portland priciest neighborhoods: Arlington Heights. Continue down Tichner for a few blocks until you see the sign for SW Parkside Drive and turn left. Follow the short staircase (7) up to uber-skinny Parkside Drive (8). A couple hundred feet later when Parkside Drive ends at a T with Parkside Lane (9), stay to the left. Follow the street for 300 or 400 feet, the next staircase will be on your left. Be careful: this one is easy to miss (10, 11, 12). At the bottom of the stairs a path (13) will take you to SW Sacajawea (no sign). Turn left at Sacajawea and follow the street for a couple hundred yards to the staircase entrance to the International Rose Test Garden (14).
Point C
This staircase will take you to Portland's most famous park. On top of the obvious roses (if they're in bloom) it's an excellent spot for people watching (15). The garden has a bathroom and a water fountain (maps there will direct you). Exit the park at its northeastern corner (you entered at its northwestern) on a paved path (16). Follow the path until it ends at a sidewalk on the right (17). Continue on the sidewalk for a few hundred yards, cross at the crosswalk by the water fountain (18). Past the water fountain, turn right on a paved road (closed to cars) and pass the swing set to the big obelisk (19).
Point D
This is the official front entrance to the park. There are water fountains and several picnic tables. Go down the stairs in front of the obelisk (20) and turn left at SW Lewis and Clark Drive. A hundred feet down the road there is a very small path on your right that will take you to SW Cedar (21). Be careful not to miss that path! On SW Cedar make an almost immediate left. The road dead-ends soon thereafter at my favorite staircase in Portland (22, 23). Continue down SW Cactus and watch for good views on your left (24, 25). Turn left at SW Green and the next thing you know you're at the awful 23rd and W Burnside intersection you more or less started at. I wouldn't recommend buying the food at the adjacent Zupans grocery store but they have bathrooms and some good samples.
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