Badger Creek

Easy (to creekside boulders)

5.8 miles round trip

400 feet elevation gain

Open all year

Use: hikers, horses


Difficult (to Badger Lake)

21.8 miles round trip

2300 feet elevation gain

Open May to early November

Badger Creek’s wilderness canyon climbs from the sagebrush flats of Central Oregon to the alpine forests of Mt. Hood. In the middle it crosses a strange, mixed zone known as a pine-oak grassland. A short hike along Badger Creek visits this botanically fascinating middle zone, rich with wildflowers from both the high desert and the mountains. If you continue on a longer trek or backpacking trip you can climb to the creek’s headwaters at a high mountain lake.

To drive here from Portland, take Highway …

This chapter taken from the book 100 Hikes/Travel Guide: Northwest Oregon & Southwest Washington.