Hike of the Week: Drift Creek

Hike among towering firs in Oregon's Drift Creek Wilderness

Drift Creek

Old growth on the Oregon Coast




by Craig Romano
photo by Craig Romano
produced by Michael Fagin

June 9, 2006

Quick Facts
Location: Oregon Coast
Land Agency: Drift Creek Wilderness, Siuslaw National Forest
Roundtrip: 8.0 miles
Elevation gain: 1,400 feet
Access: From Portland head south on I-5 to Albany. Continue west on US 20 to Newport. Follow US 101 south to Ona Beach State Park. Turn left onto North Beaver Creek Road. In one mile bear left. Continue 2.75 miles turning right onto Elkhorn Road. In 5.8 miles turn left onto FR 50. In 1.4 miles bear right on FR 5087 and follow to trailhead in 3.4 miles.


Just a few miles away from the crashing Pacific Ocean is this tranquil wilderness area protecting a real Oregon rarity-coastal old growth forests. The Drift Creek Wilderness Area contains over 5,800 acres of primeval fir, hemlock and spruce. The coastal forests along US 101 have been heavily logged since settlers spilled into the Willamette Valley. Drift Creek stands as a testimony to what most of this region’s forests once harbored.
The Horse Creek Trail will take you into the heart of this sanctuary. From a high ridge, climb a couple of hundred feet before dropping over 1,000 feet to pristine Drift Creek. The good trail snakes around towering firs. The sound of the distant surf can faintly be heard over chattering wrens and thrushes.
If the creek level is low you can ford it to find two trails leading up ridges in the southern half of the wilderness. But whether you explore further, or just while away the day under a giant tree by the creek, make sure you save some energy for the climb back to the trailhead.