Pdxguide

This linear park starts on the east edge of the Sellwood neighborhood in the SE and goes all the way to the exotic town of Boring (yes, that IS its real name.) This route was originally a trolley line (alternately known as the the “Springwater” line or the “Bellrose” line) built in 1903 and discontinued in 1958. In the 1990’s, the city of Portland and Metro (the regional body of government) acquired the unused rail line and converted into a park. Now instead of steel rails and ties, we have a paved 10 foot wide path that you can walk, bike, skateboard, etc. etc.

The length of the path is approximately 16 miles long , and the main entrance (trailhead) is at SE 45th at SE Johnson Creek Blvd. There is a “sneak” entrance to the trail at the end of SE Berkeley (just keep on going past the racquet club nonsense) off of SE Tacoma. (For you thrift kids, this is on the other side of the Union Pacific tracks by the Goodwill Bins!) In the end of 2006, this trail will fully connect to the OMSI-Springwater Trail (see Oaks Bottom listing) via a series of bridges spanning 99E, the UP railroad tracks, and Johnson Creek. When that happens, we’ll have a 21-mile long path, reaching from downtown Portland to Boring! Until then, you’ll have to use a somewhat-tricky street connection via SE Spokane St to get between the two.

Here are some cool things on the Springwater trail:

Johnson Creek. This is one of the last free-flowing streams in the Portland area. The Springwater Corridor parallels the creek for most of its course.