In the last two years the Equestrian community along with support from Oregon Equestrian Trails, Valley View Riders and Territorial Riders Back Country Horsemen has been working hard to keep the trails at Tryon Creek State Park open to equestrians. One of the challenges of the area is the horse trailer parking made difficult from competition from autos and buses visiting the park, but with the support of the park management through enforcement and signage, it has been a pleasant experience for our equestrian riders. Last year the horse trailer parking area was slightly enlarged by the removal of a poorly placed mounting ramp.
The plan was to eventually replace the old mounting ramp with new mount block just on the edge of the trail that starts at the edge of the parking area, but is still visible from the parking area. The new mounting block is the same size and design as the one at Milo McIver State Park.
The Valley View Riders were kind enough to donate all the materials for the mounting block and it was built by members from the North Valley Chapter of Oregon Equestrian Trails. Special thanks goes out to Dave, Deb, Gary, Marty and the Park managers John and Dan for all their efforts in making this happen.
At Tryon Creek State Natural Area, the equestrian trails have the greatest variation in grade compared to the hiking trails, each begins near the ridge line and traverses down to the creek and back. The trail surface is packed gravel, which can support horse traffic in winter, From the equestrian parking area the North Horse Loop is 2.1 miles, while the West Horse Loop is 3.1 miles. Tryon Creek State park has 670-acre forested area along a ravine with well-maintained trails for hikers, horses & leashed dogs, located at 11321 SW Terwilliger Blvd, Portland, OR 97219.
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