Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Beautiful ride. Peaceful, cool, quiet. Minus 1 star because there are multiple conflicting signs showing bicycles are, and are not allowed, literally 10 feet apart.

Definitely is a nice nature area to check out! With it being so close to the highway you don't really lose all the highway noise until you're quite a ways onto the trail, but then you find yourself with no noise but birds and running water from the river. It also has some nice, albeit somewhat obstructed, views of Mt. Hood on a clear day, but nothing to write home about.

Overall opinion: I'm glad that I checked it out and it's worth checking out yourself, but it won't be a place that I repeatedly visit in the future.

Parking here is free and right off Hwy 14, so it's easy to find but the parking lot entrance can sneak up on you. I have visited here a handful of times over the past decade. This last time, they have moved some earth and changed the topography to try to help along the wildlife habitat and diversity. I hope it looks more like the beautiful green oasis it once was in a few years. Right now it's a lot of brown, bordered by large businesses. They were once easy to ignore, as the path from the parking lot heading in, was down on the side of the the ridge you now walk across the top of. So the mound of dirt blocked out Washougal city and you could try and pretend you were nowhere near civilization. Part of the park is unavailable for half the year so as to not disturb the nesting birds. I heartily support that. I hope the changes are for the better.

Great short hike. Has a biking trail that connects from Captain Clark Park. I really like how the gravel trails are elevated and you get a view into the wetlands. This is a great place if you are a bird watcher, I saw a lot of people with cameras and binoculars. Being next to the river makes it beautiful on sunny days. Has good bathroom access and signage. Would do it again for short getaways during the week or weekends.

Perfect Trail for all ages along the Colombia river. Easy walking. We walked the entire length all the way to the east end which is roughly 4 miles each way. Very little elevation change. Great place for bird watching. And of course Mount Hood in all its glory.