Eight Dollar Mountain Boardwalk Trail, OR

Eight Dollar Mountain is one of the most significant botanical sites in Oregon, representing nearly half of the botanical species native in the state, including many of its rarest plants. Eight Dollar Mountain is not all that big by mountain standards, but the diversity of life found on it makes the mountain loom large in a botanist's eye. From the parking area for the boardwalk trailhead, the hiker is offered two hiking options. One is to cross the street and go uphill to the 0.25-mile boardwalk trail, or go straight from the parking area and take the 1.0-mile trail that overlooks the Illinois River.


The boardwalk trail is the key feature of this sight. Eight Dollar Mountain offers a diversity of plants that is incredibly unique in such a small area. This mountain has a wet side and a dry side that coexist within several feet of each other. I'd offer to list the plants found here, but I don't know the names of that many plants. Perhaps what most people come to check out are the California pitcher plants and the wild azaleas. Both plants are amazing in their own ways. The pitcher plants, of course, because they are just the coolest thing ever, and the azaleas because they just smell soooo good.The boardwalk trail is an easy jaunt and it can not really be called a hike, but the one-mile trek over the Illinois River can qualify as more of a true hike. The area is quite dry and the sun knows full well whenever someone ventures onto the trail, so be sure to put on your hat. Or go early.

2011-06-16 blueberry1222