Hey, TualatinTake a Hike! Tualatin has some wonderful areas to explore on foot.

So, put on your walking shoes, grab the dog and the kids, and get some great exercise for mind, body and spirit. Try the walk described below. It is one of three walks designed by the Sherwood Merrywalkers for Tualatin. The walks are each 10K (6.2 miles) but have 5K options. The Merrywalkers are a Volkswalk club. Volkswalks are noncompetitive, organized walks designed to promote health through fellowship, fitness and fun. Participation is free, but walkers are asked to sign a registration log for liability purposes. Official volkswalkers have distance and event books that they can stamp and there is a $3 charge for this. If you care to make a small voluntary donation, however, it helps pay for printing costs. More information about volkswalking is available on our website, which is listed below. Hedges Creek Wetlands is this months walk. Ask at Haggens customer service counter for the walk box. In it you will find a page to sign and directions and maps for the walks. Haggens Grocery Store is located at 8515 SW Tualatin-Sherwood Road. Store hours are 6 a.m. - midnight. By following the directions, you will complete either a 5K or 10K walk around some of Tualatins scenic areas. The two walks follow different routes but each makes a loop back to Haggens. Take your time and enjoy the sites noted on the directions. The 10K walk will take you by Hedges Creek wetlands, Sweek Pond and the Heritage Center. Stop in to see the displays of a mastodon tusk, giant sloth sacrum, and Indian artifacts. The Center is open Monday-Friday between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. You will also walk by four of the oldest remaining homes of the original city of Tualatin, the well-manicured Tualatin Country Club and Golf Course, and then out to Jurgens Park. On the way back, you will go through Winona Cemetery, a pioneer cemetery where Daniel Boones great-great grandson is buried. Then enter Tualatin City Park and walk out to just before the pedestrian bridge over the Tualatin River. Return on a pretty wooded trail along the river, back through the park again, and over to Tualatin Commons to circle the lake. Then make your way back to Haggens to finish the walk. Bring the dog along for some exercise, but leash and clean up rules apply. Restrooms are available along the route, which is also stroller-friendly. The 5K walk will take you through Hedges Creek wetlands and by the Heritage Center. Then you will go into Tualatin City Park up to the pedestrian bridge and return via the wooded trail and cross Boones Ferry Rd. over to the Commons to circle the lake and then back to Haggens to finish. You will also go past four of Tualatins oldest homes. If you like to walk in nature, join us for a 2-mile Snails Walk on any Monday at 9:00 a.m. at the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge. We meet in front of the visitors center, located at 19255 SW Pacific Hwy. between King City and Sherwood.

For more information about the Merrywalkers, our special event walks, and volkswalking, visit our website at www.sherwoodmerrywalkers.org, send email to info@sherwoodmerrywalkers.org, or phone 503-625-8986.

Browns Ferry Park Walk. Directions for this walk are at Legacy Meridian Park Hospital, 19300 SW 65th Avenue. The free-standing start box is located just inside the doors to the Main Lobby. You will walk to the east side of Tualatin to the greenway trail along the Tualatin River that leads into Browns Ferry Park. The trail continues through the park into attractive neighborhoods, and onto pathways through Atfalati Park. This 11K walk is rated 2+ for one long gradual incline at the beginning of the walk, a hill at about 4K, and another in Atfalati Park. Make the most of these breathtaking opportunities to stop and enjoy the sights around you. Pets are okay and restrooms available. Three Cities, Three Parks. The starting place for this walk is the REI, 7410 Bridgeport Road. REI opens at 10 a.m. each day. Ask at the Customer Service Desk for the walk box where you will find directions and maps. This walk will take you into Tualatin Park and across the footbridge over the Tualatin River into Cook Park in Tigard and then back out to Durham City Park and ending at REI-Bridgeport. The footbridge across the Tualatin River was a joint venture by the cities of Tualatin, Tigard, and Durham. This walk is 10K and fairly flat, so is rated 1+. It is stroller- and pet-friendly and there are restrooms along the route.