One minute you’re cruising past Happy Valley subdivisions, with basketball hoops in driveways and shrubs lining front yards. The next, you’re climbing a steep, narrow road with fir trees swaying overhead and birds chirping about your arrival.
Thousands of Boy Scouts have made this journey over the years – and, soon, so can everybody else. Metro purchased part of a beloved scouting camp overlooking Happy Valley today, and recently bought a smaller property next door. At nearly 100 acres, the new Scouter Mountain Natural Area will feature hiking trails, parking, restrooms and a picnic shelter.
“We don't have many chances to protect nature on this scale in fast-growing communities,” said Metro Council President Tom Hughes. “Fortunately, in our region, we’re positioned to take advantage of these opportunities when they come along.”
Metro’s voter-approved Natural Areas Program purchased the land for a total of $2.1 million: $1.35 million for the 69-acre Scouts property and $750,000 for the adjacent 30-acre parcel. The City of Happy Valley will make upgrades with its allocation from Metro’s 2006 natural areas bond measure, which set aside money for local communities to invest in nature close to home. And the North Clackamas Parks and Recreation District will manage the future natural area, which could open as early as 2012.
Rising more than 700 feet above the valley floor, Scouter Mountain is part of a string of ancient lava domes that provide panoramic vistas across the east side of the Portland metropolitan area. The former scouting camp features a small wet meadow and a large Douglas-fir forest with Western red cedar and hemlock trees.
“When you hike through the forest, you’d never guess you’re so close to streets, homes and schools,” said Metro Councilor Shirley Craddick, who represents the eastern part of the region. “We’re lucky that we don't have to leave town to connect with nature.”
Most of the new natural area was purchased from the Boy Scouts of America’s Cascade Pacific Council, which owns another 110 acres next door. The 2,000 campers who visit every summer will now share Scouter Mountain with fellow hikers and bird-watchers.
The Scouts plan to invest proceeds from the sale at their 17 camping properties in Northwest Oregon and Southwest Washington. More than 15,000 youth and volunteers attend overnight or day-camping programs every summer, and another 30,000 Scouts camp independently throughout the year.
Before selling part of their land at Scouter Mountain, the Scouts removed the 22,000-square-foot Chief Obie Lodge. An independent study determined that it would cost more than $8 million to restore the deteriorating building, which had been closed since 2004 due to fire safety issues. The Scouts’ legacy will be honored, however, by incorporating salvaged pieces of the lodge in a new picnic shelter.
“Like so many others, I have very fond memories of camping and other activities on Scouter Mountain,” said the Scouts’ council president, Gene Grant, who visited as a dad and a young Scoutmaster. “I am truly excited to help create the new Scouter Mountain Natural Area.”