"All of Powell Butte” is a choose your own route FKT and includes all trails in Powell Butte Nature Park, except Reservoir Lane and the sections of the Park Center Trail that connect the sections of parking lot (marked 42 & 43 on the online map). FKT attempts may include adjacent roads and trails outside the park for ease of connections. This route was selected due to its scenic views, wildflowers, popularity and accessibility to those who live in the Portland Metro Area. It is a route that can be run by someone who is reliant on public transit or human powered travel to get to the trailhead. It is recommended to run this route on weekdays or earlier morning hours (before 10am) on weekends due to popularity of the trails. The exact mileage and elevation gain will depend on the route selected. All trails add up to a minimum of 11.5 miles.
https://www.portland.gov/sites/default/files/2020-05/powell-butte-nature-park-trail-map-2016.pdf?_ga=2.222533208.2111645540.1652596830-1244908080.1652596830
From Friends of Powell Butte (written prior to 2014):
“Powell Butte Nature Park is an extinct volcano and is Portland’s second-largest park after Forest Park. In 1925 the Portland Water Bureau purchased the land for future water reservoirs and leased the northeast portion to Henry Anderegg, a farmer and owner of Meadowland Crest Dairy. The city continued leasing to Anderegg until 1948 when the farming pasture was discontinued. But cows still grazed on the acreage to preserve the pasture land. In 1981 a 50-million gallon underground reservoir was built that serves as the hub of the Water Bureau’s distribution system. A second 50-million gallon reservoir is expected to be complete in 2014. The former Powell Valley Water District has three reservoirs on the butte, which are now managed by the Water Bureau
On clear days, five mountains can be seen from the park. It includes over nine miles of trails that are suitable for mountain-biking, horseback riding, and hiking. There is a 0.6 mile paved trail which is disabled-accessible. The park is home to many birds of prey with its open meadows, groves of wild hawthorn trees and forested slopes of Western red cedar, and wetlands near Johnson Creek. Also at home here are raccoons, gray foxes, skunks, bats, squirrels, chipmunks, coyotes, and black-tail mule deer.”
