Exploring in and around Oregon

Category: River Park

Parks on or near Rivers

Horsethief Butte

Horsethief Butte is a large nature park with historical significance in Lyle, Washington in the Columbia River Gorge very close to The Dalles, Oregon. It is a part of Columbia Hills Historical State Park.

This park consists of a trail that goes around and through the titular Horsethief Butte. Visitors are also allowed to climb and cross over Horsethief Butte, but are recommended to proceed with caution in doing so.

There is a decent-sized parking lot at the entrance as well as a public restroom. A Columbia Hills State Park Pass is required to park here. A day pass can be purchased at the self-pay kiosk in the parking lot for $10, and not only covers Horsethief Butte, but also covers day use for many other places that are within the Columbia Hills State Park.

Like the nearby petroglyphs site, there are also petroglyphs on and near Horsethief Butte itself. Visitors may need to climb up the butte to see the petroglyphs. Like any historical site, it is important to respect and preserve these places.

The Columbia River Gorge is a place of beautiful and dramatic views, and Horsethief Butte is no exception. The large rocky faces paired with the river provide stunning and dramatic views of the landscape. Come during the spring season to see wildflowers blooming everywhere around the rocky and windswept surface.

The main path of the park is a flat trail that goes around the butte, and takes you right next to the Columbia River. It can be very windy here, so take extra care that hats or other items do not blow away. There is also an entrance to climb over the butte on this side.

The riverside part of the trail does not go too far, and does not at this time go around the entire Butte, as the trail is blocked off after a certain point.

Like many riverside and gorge habitats, this area has lots of different birds. The most prominent birds are often ravens, vultures, eagles, and the very audible canyon wrens. Due to the high amount of wind, visitors can often see many birds – especially Ravens swooping and flying all around in a dramatic fashion as if they were surfing the wind.

On the north side of the Butte, there are trails as well. You can follow the dry fields on the western side, but the trail eventually ends as well instead of looping around the whole butte. You can also access the butte to climb over from this side.

Horsethief Butte is a great place for an easy and beautiful riverside walk. There is also a more challenging option of climbing over the Butte. This place has ancient native petroglyphs, lots of avian wildlife, and is often covered in wildflowers in the spring season.

This park is typically very lightly populated due to the fact that it is near no major city. It is a very short drive from The Dalles, a smaller city in Oregon along the Columbia River. The close location to The Dalles, its beauty, and cultural significance do attract a small amount of visitors.

If you are in the Columbia River Gorge near The Dalles, and you want a unique natural place to check out that is also historically significant, do not skip visiting Horsethief Butte.

April 10, 2025
Rooster Rock State Park

Rooster Rock State Park is a large state park in the Columbia River Gorge area just east of the Portland Metro Area. It is a river and forest park situated right next to the Columbia River near Corbett, Oregon.

Rooster Rock has a lot to offer – whether you want to go on a nice long walk by the river, or hike in the woods, or have a nice day out in nature in general.

You can find many interconnected riverside and forested trails that go throughout the park, large open green areas with picnic tables, and even river beaches. The stunning view of the Columbia River as well as Sandy Island and the Washington side of the river is one of the main attractions. There is also an area in this park that is a ‘clothing optional’ beach.

You have to pay to enter this park, or use a state park pass that lists this location. There is a very large parking lot. There are several picnic tables as well as a restroom at this location.

This park’s trails are relatively easy, but not as easy as a city park or small nature park. There is some incline in some areas, and some trail/areas are less accessible at different times of the year due to water levels.

There are several parts of the riverside paths that can and will be flooded, especially in the late Winter or early Spring. Make sure to bring some good boots if you want to walk around the riverside area in the wet seasons.

There is a forest loop trail within Rooster Rock that you can walk – it has some slight incline, but should be considered relatively easy as a hike. The forest, being right next to the river, is incredibly green and usually quite peaceful.

You can often see robins and woodpeckers as well as other common Oregon birds in the forest here.

The forest loop is incredibly mossy, and depending on the time of year, you can find large amounts of mushrooms popping up, especially along parts of the trail.

At the halfway point of the forest loop in Rooster Rock, there is a viewpoint with a bench where you can look over at the river, the highway, and Sandy Island.

From this point, you can choose to continue down the forest loop trail back, or you can descend down and to the left into the riverside path area. Be careful taking the riverside path area, as water level and erosion might block off parts of the path making it difficult to loop back.

From the riverside path area, you can get an up-close view of the Columbia river and the dunes on Sandy Island.

Along the riverside, you can see a variety of birds including ducks, geese, swans, herons, kingfishers, gulls, eagles, hawks, as well as other common Oregon birds.

There are not usually many people at this park. Due to its location just outside of the Portland Metro Area, and its large size, there are always some people, but it rarely has a high density of traffic.

This is a dog-friendly park.

If you want to go to a large state park just east of Portland with stunning river views, lush green forest paths, and without a ton of other people around, check out Rooster Rock State Park.

March 11, 2025