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Geographic region: Tualatin Hills, Oregon Coast Range
Municipality/town: Banks
Route configuration: loops
Distance: 19.6 miles
Min/max elevation: 219’/1,264’
Total ascent: 2,204’
Max grade: 8.2%/9.6% down
Surface: ~12 miles gravel road, 7 miles paved road, ~0.5 mile paved trail
Bikes allowed: yes (gravel or mountain bike recommended)
Obstacles: none
Best months: any
Permits: none required
Traffic: light to very light on weekends; there may be some logging traffic during the weekdays on NW Green Mountain Rd
Feels safe to go alone (my personal comfort level): yes
Driving distance from downtown Portland: 27 miles
[Click on buttons above to get route links on Gaia GPS or Ride with GPS]
To get to the start: Park at the Manning Trailhead of the Banks-Vernonia State Trail off Hwy 26 (about 24 miles west of Portland).
Head east on Banks-Vernonia State Trail – go 0.2 mi
@0.2 mi: slight L on NW Sell Rd – go 1.7 mi
@1.9 mi: L on NW Green Mtn Rd – go 2.9 mi
@4.8 mi: R on NW Linklater Rd – go 0.3 mi
@5.1 mi: R on NW Sellers Rd – go 3.2 mi
@8.3 mi: R on NW Woollen Rd – go 1.2 mi
@9.4 mi: R on NW Green Mtn Rd – go 5.1 mi
@14.5 mi: L on NW Pihl Rd – go 3.5 mi
@18.0 mi: L on NW Turk Rd – go 500’
@18.1 mi: R to stay on NW Turk Rd – go 1.0 mi
@19.0 mi: R on NW Sell Rd – go 0.4 mi
@19.4 mi: slight R on Banks-Vernonia State Trail – go 0.2 mi
End @19.6 mi
This unique route design is somewhat of a figure-eight pattern, with a middle-section being repeated. This is to maximize covering some very scenic areas in the beautiful Tualatin Hills.
The first couple of miles are in flat farmland paralleling Highway 26. Then it turns north up NW Green Mountain Road, with a decent three-mile climb winding through forested land that has intermittent homes spread along it. You will loop back down the hill via NW Sellers Road, which on a clearer day affords some beautiful panoramic views of hills and valleys to the west.
At the 9.4-mile point, you will once again climb the steady three miles up NW Green Mountain Road. This time, however, you will continue north on NW Green Mountain Road to the 14.5-mile point, where you will be deeper into logging country.
You will then head south on NW Pihl Road, working your way to the finish. These last five or so miles are a nice gradual downhill with some more beautiful views of hills and valleys.
Geographic region: Tualatin Hills, Oregon Coast Range
Municipality/town: Banks
Route configuration: loop
Distance: 12.4 miles
Min/max elevation: 219’/1,263’
Total ascent: 1,215’
Max grade: 8.1% up/9.0% down
Surface: ~6 miles gravel road, ~6 miles paved road, ~0.5 mile paved path
Bikes allowed: yes (gravel or mountain bike recommended)
Obstacles: none
Best months: any
Permits: none required
Traffic: light to very light on weekends; there may be some logging traffic during the weekdays on NW Green Mountain Rd
Feels safe to go alone (my personal comfort level): yes
Driving distance from downtown Portland: 27 miles
[Click on buttons above to get route links on Gaia GPS or Ride with GPS]
To get to the start: Park at the Manning Trailhead of the Banks-Vernonia State Trail off Hwy 26 (about 24 miles west of Portland).
Head east on Banks-Vernonia State Trail – go 0.2 mi
@0.2 mi: slight L on NW Sell Rd – go 1.7 mi
@1.9 mi: L on NW Green Mtn Rd – go 5.3 mi
@7.2 mi: L on NW Pihl Rd – go 3.5 mi
@10.7 mi: L on NW Turk Rd – go 500’
@10.8 mi: R to stay on NW Turk Rd – go 1.0 mi
@11.8 mi: R on NW Sell Rd – go 0.4 mi
@12.2 mi: slight R on Banks-Vernonia State Trail – go 0.2 mi
End @12.4 mi
This is a nice option if you are looking for a condensed route with a few good hills, nice scenery on some fairly quiet gravel roads, all the while feeling safe enough to go solo. The route starts at the Manning Trailhead of the Banks-Vernonia State Trail, although it only utilizes a quarter mile of that trail which is right at the start heading east. You will continue heading southeast on NW Sell Road through farmland for 1.7 miles before heading north on NW Green Mountain Road, where some decent climbing begins.
On southern end of NW Green Mountain Road, you will go through a mix of farmlands and residential neighborhoods, but it gradually becomes more sparsely populated as you climb higher into the hills. You will pass through patches of forested areas, occasional crop fields, and eventually into logging territory. The peak of the climb occurs just after the seven-mile mark as you turn left onto NW Pihl Road to head south again.
NW Pihl Road winds gently down the hills toward gradually more populated areas again, with some gorgeous panoramic views of the Coast Range along the way to get you there.
Geographic region: Tualatin Hills, Oregon Coast Range
Municipality/town: Banks, Buxton (unincorporated Washington County)
Route configuration: loop with a short out-and-Back
Distance: 18.3 miles
Min/max elevation: 238’/2,157’
Total ascent: 2,349'
Max grade: 10.7% up/11.6% down
Surface: ~14.5 miles gravel/dirt road, ~4 miles paved road
Bikes allowed: yes (gravel or mountain bike recommended)
Obstacles: one gate on dogleg to Buxton Lookout
Best months: spring, summer, fall (higher elevations can be covered in snow)
Permits: The short dogleg off Buxton Lookout Rd, heading up to Buxton Lookout Tower, has a gate with a Weyerhaeuser sign that indicates permits are required beyond that point.
Traffic: mostly light to very light on the weekends; light to very light on weekends; there may be some logging traffic during the weekdays on NW Green Mountain Rd, NW Buxton Lookout Rd, NW Bacona Rd, NW Hoffman Rd.
Feels safe to go alone (my personal comfort level): Most of it feels pretty safe, but the northeast section is remote with no cell service. At least bring bear spray if you go alone.
Driving distance from downtown Portland: 27 miles
[Click on buttons above to get route links on Gaia GPS or Ride with GPS]
To get to the start: Park at the Manning Trailhead of the Banks-Vernonia State Trail off Hwy 26.
Head north on NW Pihl Rd – go 0.1 mi
@0.1 mi: R to stay on NW Pihl Rd – go 4.2 mi
@4.3 mi: L on NW Green Mountain Rd – go 1.7 mi
@6.0 mi: continue straight on NW Buxton Lookout Rd – go 1.2 mi
@7.2 mi: sharp R on unnamed road (there is a gate to cross) – go 0.4 mi
@7.6 mi: stay straight/L at Y – go 0.2 mi
@7.8 mi: L on unnamed road to get to peak of Buxton Lookout – go 400’. Climb up on stack of rocks at the end of the road to get the best view. Turn around and head back to rejoin Buxton Lookout Rd in 0.7 mi
@8.6 mi: continue straight on Buxton Lookout Rd – go 0.8 mi
@9.4 mi: L on NW Bacona Rd – go 0.5 mi
@9.9 mi: R on NW Hoffman Rd/Lawrence Rd – go 0.4 mi
@10.3 mi: L to stay on NW Hoffman Rd – go 0.5 mi
@10. 8 mi: L on NW Genzer Rd – go 2.1 mi
@12.9 mi: continue straight onto NW Bacona Rd – go 2.5 mi
@15.4 mi: L on Banks-Vernonia State Trail – go 1.7 mi
@17.1 mi: L on NW Pongratz Rd – go 1.3 mi
@18.4 mi: R on NW Pihl Rd – go 200’ back to parking lot
End @18.5 mi
Starting in a fairly populated area just off Highway 26 at the Manning Trailhead of the Banks-Vernonia State Trail, this route doesn’t take long to venture into sparsely populated forest and then to quite rugged, back-country terrain up to some gorgeous panoramic views.
At about mile point 4.3, you will head north on NW Green Mountain Rd through mostly forested land with a few scattered farms. At the six-mile mark, you will continue onto NW Buxton Lookout Road through thick Douglas fir trees. At 7.2 miles, you will take a sharp right and soon approach a gate on the entrance of Weyerhaeuser Logging Company property. This signage here has varied on our trips to this area, with the most restrictive saying that recreation permits are required. From this gate, it is less than six-tenths of a mile to the top of Buxton Lookout, where the views are fantastic. At the end of a short gravel road to this point, there is a pile of boulders, and it’s definitely worth climbing up on top to get a panoramic view of forest and valley.
After you return to NW Buxton Lookout Road, you will take it north for less than a mile to connect to NW Bacona Road, where you will head west before turning onto NW Hoffman/Lawrence Rd through a thickly treed area. You will then head south on NW Genzer Road, where you will begin to see a few scattered homes on this rolling gravel road. At the 12.9-mile point, you will rejoin NW Bacona Road for some more gradual downhill. At the 15.4-mile point, you will turn east onto the Banks-Vernonia State Trail, crossing over the Buxton Trestle. At just after 17 miles, you’ll take a slight left onto NW Pongratz Rd to finish out the route on a quiet gravel road through gently rolling farmland.
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