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TRIP 9 Kings Mountain Junior Loop

Distance		4.6 miles, Loop
Elevation Gain		2100 feet
Hiking Time		3 to 4 hours
Optional Map		Tillamook State Forest (trail not shown)
Usually Open		March to November
Best Times		May and June
Trail Use		No dogs (allowed, but too rocky and rough for most dogs)
Agency		Forest Grove District, Tillamook State Forest
Difficulty		Difficult

HIGHLIGHTS Here is your opportunity to find both solitude and fine scenery on an excellent loop just west of popular Kings Mountain. The goal is a first-rate viewpoint from which you can enjoy sweeping vistas of the vast Tillamook Forest, including a particularly interesting perspective of the rugged west face of Kings Mountain.

DIRECTIONS Drive west from Portland on State Highway 6 toward Tillamook. Near milepost 25, turn right into the signed parking lot for the Kings Mountain Trailhead.

The hike starts with a gradual ascent of 0.1 mile on the well-traveled Kings Mountain Trail to a junction with the Wilson River Trail. About 20 feet past the signed junction with the eastbound Wilson River Trail, you turn left on the westbound section of that path and gradually climb through dense forest. After just 0.2 mile the trail crosses an old jeep road. The recommended loop returns on the Wilson River Trail, but, for now, turn sharply right onto the jeep road.

The abandoned jeep track soon makes a sweeping turn to the left as it steadily climbs through a forest dominated by red alders and bigleaf maples. Soon after this turn the route narrows to become a foot trail. Although blowdown is sometimes a problem, this unmaintained trail remains easy to follow. As always, do your part to keep this path open by removing limbs, rocks, and debris as you hike. More sweeping turns take you to a short but welcome level stretch at about 0.8 mile. Expect to hear tiny winter wrens here belting out their remarkably loud songs.

View east from Kings Mountain Junior

After the level stretch, the trail ascends in a sweeping left turn and comes to a potentially confusing junction with an old trail that angles off to the right. You bear left on the main trail, climb for 0.4 mile, and then reach another junction, this time with a sketchy trail that crosses your route and which may be marked with red plastic tape on the trees.

Go straight, still on the main trail, and cross a slope where two small rock slides have tumbled over the trail making the surface a bit uneven. Despite the rocks, the route remains obvious as you push forward and catch your first glimpses of Kings Mountain to the northeast. At 1.7 miles you come to a small opening on a ridgetop. Ignoring a game trail that goes steeply uphill to the right, you go straight and contour across a steep hillside for 150 yards to an unsigned junction with the well-maintained Wilson River Trail, which angles in from the left. This is the return route of the recommended loop.

To reach Kings Mountain Junior, go straight on the Wilson River Trail and follow it for 100 yards to an unsigned junction on a ridgecrest. The main trail goes straight here, on its way to Lester Creek (see Trip 8). You turn right, however, onto a very steep hiker’s route. Watch your step on this section, especially on the way back down, because loose gravel here makes for poor footing. After 0.2 mile the very steep uphill abates, as you snake along the top of a narrow ridge. The views are excellent, but hikers who are particularly afraid of heights may get a bit squeamish. When you reach the 2188-foot summit of Kings Mountain Junior the views are partially obstructed but still good, especially of the impressively rugged west face of Kings Mountain to the northeast.

One possible return route is to go northeast on a sketchy and overgrown path that goes steeply downhill then back up for 0.3 mile to an unsigned ridgetop junction at a switchback in the well-maintained Kings Mountain Trail. From here, you turn right and descend 1.9 miles to your car. (See Trip 10 for a description of this trail.)

For the recommended loop, however, backtrack downhill to the ridgetop junction with the Wilson River Trail. Turn left (back the way you came), walk 100 yards to the junction with the trail you came in on, and then bear right, going downhill on the Wilson River Trail. This maintained trail has a much gentler grade than the way you came up, so it is easier on the knees. The trail winds down lazy switchbacks and long traverses always in the forest but with occasional views through the trees of Kings Mountain. After about 1.3 miles the trail crosses a small seasonal creek on a bridge a little above an unseen waterfall and, shortly thereafter, reaches the junction with the jeep road you turned onto on the way up. Cross the jeep road and retrace your steps to the Kings Mountain Trailhead.