Welcome to another installment of Wanderlust Wednesday! I’m loving going back through my favorite photos of trails we’ve hiked as a family in Yamhill County! Hopefully, these posts are encouraging you to get out and enjoy some of the beauty that Newberg has to offer (or maybe even to travel to Newberg for a day hike + wine tasting!) Today, I’m featuring a longer trail in south Newberg: Gettman Loop!
Gettman Loop is a CPRD-maintained trail that loops around the Chehalem Glenn Golf Course. I know, that sounds NOT fun, just walking around a golf course, but the trail only goes alongside the course itself for a little while. Most of the trail is through the forest just behind the course, and through some surrounding fields (which are naturally my favorite parts!).
To get there, take Fernwood Road east from Springbrook Road. At the 4-way stop just past Brutscher, you’ll see the golf shop on the left, and a parking lot with a tent on the right. Turn into the parking lot on the right and park. You can pickup the paved trailhead at the west end of the parking lot. Watch for golf carts–this is a pretty heavily trafficked area for the golfers. Follow the path closest to the road as you head west. Just as you approach the spot where Brutscher Road meets Fernwood, you’ll turn to the left on a gravel path into the field. There’s a little CPRD sign here to mark the trail. Just like that, you’re in nature! During the summer, this stretch is an excellent spot to pick blackberries! Look at my little cutie on this part of the path!
This path goes all the way to the back of the golf course, just touching the edge of the course on the southwest corner. If it’s a hot day, there’s a large oak tree at that corner that’s a great spot to take a break from the heat. There’s also a port-a-potty there. From there, the path turns to the east and hooks around the back of the course briefly before heading down into the forest!
The forest path is so pretty! There are a few steep parts where you’ll want to hold your kiddo’s hand. It crosses a stream with a little wooden bridge, then head backs up out of the forest into a flat path at the east end of the golf course. This is another great stop for blackberries! This part of the trail hooks around and moves north along a field with a wide dirt path. The trail briefly goes along a paved golf course path before heading back into the forest.
By now, I’m usually carrying my kids, and this last little stretch is usually the hardest! The path comes out onto the sidewalk on Fernwood Road, and cars can go pretty fast through there even though I think the speed limit is only 25. AND it’s uphill. Friends, we have had some serious tears from all parties at this point in the hike, but you’re ALMOST there! Get up that hill and you’re back at the parking lot! One bonus of this part of the trail is that it has some really beautiful landscaping! We love to get ideas for our garden here because they’ve planted such an array of beautiful plants here!
This is a great hike that is a little more challenging than some of our usual ones, without being totally inaccessible for the kids. It’s also possible that we’ve only ever hiked this trail on hot days for some reason, so that just makes it FEEL harder! I love walking past the fields, as always, and the forested parts in the middle of it are a nice break. It felt weird to go to a golf course to hike at first, but really it only meets the golf course a few times and you’re mostly away from the greens. Give it a try and tell me how your hike went in the comments!
[…] ways to explore Portland with the kids? Check out my post on berry picking in Portland or one of my favorite Portland hikes with kids. When it’s time to slow down for a minute, check out my Portland family photography portfolio […]