My Trip Leader Log By Mark H
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking group | Date: June 12, 2025 | Duration: <1 day | Walking Distance: 4 Miles | Participants: 6 | Elevation Gain/Loss: n/a.
The University of Oregon has a treasure trove of architectural artwork in public spaces for visitors to enjoy. Our 2-hour walk explored many of the pieces on the south and western side of the campus.
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking group | Date: June 6, 2025 | Duration: 1 day | Walking Distance: 3 miles | Participants: 8| Elevation Gain/Loss: n/a.
The evening light brings out the colors and often unseen angles of Eugene’s colorful murals and street art. We saw some old favorites and some newer additions. Curiously, several art pieces that were visible last autumn (along an alleyway) have been painted over, including a life-sized tribute to David Bowie.
Shown: A wall-sized mural titled, “Nature’s Child.” In an alley at 957 Willamette Street.
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking group | Date: in September 2023 | Duration: 1 day | Walking Distance: 3.5 miles | Participants: 3 | Elevation Gain/Loss: 30 feet
Snag Boat Bend is the eastern unit of the William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge. The centerpiece of the property is an old meander of the Willamette River that connects with Lake Creek. On our walk, we saw four River Otters (one is shown), herons, egrets, one turkey, several kingfishers, numerous skeletal fish scattered on the bank which are believed to be carp, several ducks, signs of beaver, and a large burrow in the bank located near the water level. We were the only people on the trail during our 2.5-hour walk. Separately, we visited the Mennonite Bakery that was in the area and returned home with some delicious snacks.
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking group | Date: in April 2023 | Duration: 1 day | Walking Distance: 4.5 miles | Participants: 8 | Elevation Gain/Loss: <100 feet | Type: Urban Walking
Walkers, runners, bikers, birders, and anyone who enjoys exploring the many trails and paths of the Whilamut Natural Area in Eugene, Oregon (and nearby Springfield) can learn from these quiet stones of place. The stones help to connect people with traditional names on the land and remind people that the Kalapuya people are still here. Our 2.5-hour walk was sunny and the temperatures were perfect for a springtime walk. Shown is the Gudu-kut stone; Gudu-kut is the Kalapuyan name for frog.
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking group | Date: in April 2023 | Duration: 1 day | Walking Distance: 3 miles | Participants: 12 | Elevation Gain/Loss: 50 feet | Type: Urban Walking
Corvallis, Oregon, has a picturesque downtown area that is easily walkable. Hidden in plain sight, and in the alleyways are some colorful murals and art pieces just waiting to be discovered.
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking group | Date: in April 2023 | Duration: 1 day | Walking Distance: 3 miles | Participants: 12 | Elevation Gain/Loss: 50 feet | Type: Urban Walking
A little rain did not deter our group from seeing large murals and micro art pieces in downtown Eugene. A special treat was seeing the new colorful mural at the Farmers Market (shown).
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking group | Date: in April 2023 | Duration: 1 day | Hiking Distance: 3 miles | Participants: 10 | Type: Walking
The weather was a little cool and cloudy, but that did not deter our group of lifelong learners. Our walking group enjoyed exploring local museums, seeing colorful murals, and eating some great local food. Shown in the Opal Whitely mural in Cottage Grove. A special thanks to the Cottage Grove Museum.
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking club | Date: March 2022 | Walking Distance: 2 miles | Participants: 10
The weather was a bit wet and windy, but it did not lessen our enjoyment of the University of Oregon’s iconography. Our walk focused on the historic head sculptures at the Knight Library representing historic figures from the disciplines taught in academia, the science gargoyles of the Lokey Science Complex, and the printer’s marks (colophons) at Allen Hall. Shown is the humorous Einstein gargoyle.
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking club | Date: March 2022 | Walking Distance: 3 miles | Participants: 10
Downtown Eugene has some colorful building-sized murals along with multiple micro-art pieces. It’s been about 9-months since a previous walk downtown, it was good to see several old favorites, and a few new pieces too.
Shown are two recent additions: “We Rise” by Rachel Wolfe Goldsmith & a colorful Tyrannosaurus mural by Bayne.
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking club | Date: February 2022 | Walking Distance: 6.5 miles | Participants: 10
Our walk through the Masonic cemetery and across the UO campus recognized the 200th birthday of Thomas Condon, a fossil-hunting minister who was Oregon’s first state geologist, the University of Oregon’s first science professor, and the first to recognize the paleontological importance of the John Day region: an area with a fossil record that spans over 40 million years.
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based hiking club | Date: February 2022 | Walking Distance: 5 miles | Participants: 11
Scattered throughout the Whilamut Natural Area in Eugene, Oregon (and nearby Springfield) are 15 boulders etched with words from the Kalapuya language. These are the Kalapuya Talking Stones, and they help educate and remind visitors that the Kalapuya people, the original inhabitants of the area, are still here. The writing on the stones reflects natural items in the traditional landscape. We enjoyed visiting all 15 stones on our walk.
On Saturday, February 26th, attend the Kalapuya Storytelling & Drumming event (Downtown & Online) at the Eugene Public Library.
https://www.eugene-or.gov/Calendar.aspx?EID=25128&month=2&year=2022&day=5&calType=0
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based Hiking Club | Date: June 2021 | Distance: 5 miles | Participants: 8 | Type: Urban Walking
After 15 months of businesses having reduced in-person visits due to Covid-19 safety measures, it was good to go for a walk to re-discover 3 locally-owned independent bookstores in Eugene. Our group walked from Amazon Park to J. Michaels Books, Smith Family Books, and lopping back to Tsunami Books. A fourth bookstore was still closed to in-person visits, we will get this on the next trip. We visited a local tea house before wrapping up the day. At least 10 books were purchased between the 3 locations.
Winter is a wonderful time to explore Eugene, Oregon. Here’s a sampling of several group tours I led in late 2019 to see local murals, holiday lights, the university, and historic districts.
Leading an evening walk to see some of the holiday lights.
Learning about a local author (Opal Whiteley) and the statue commemorating her life. This was part of a local art walk.
After a tour, I always ask if participants would like to continue their day (or evening) enjoying some local flavors.
A walk through the grounds of the University of Oregon to see local art and craftsmanship.
Enjoying a brief side-trip to learn about some of the participant’s explorations in Oregon with this wall-sized map.
There are always curious things to see on my trips, this Holiday skeleton was spotted in a car while I was leading a recent group walk.
Eugene was once home to 18-miles of electric streetcars (trolleys). On this neighborhood walk, our group was able to see some of the original tracks that are resurfacing.
This location is actually near an old stop on the historic trolley line (from the previous photo), but today the stop is home to little free tea kiosk where a person can get a hot cup of tea and enjoy a book.
Walk participants are finding some micro-art pieces for themselves in this photo. This is a trompe-l’Å“il art piece, it uses realistic imagery to create the optical illusion that looks three dimensional.
Some of the curious street art in Eugene.
This was possibly the last warm-ish weekend in the Cascades this year, and our group was able to enjoy 3-days of hiking and camping at beautiful Waldo Lake, Oregon.
Trip Report:
Group Leader: Mark Hougardy | Organization: Eugene-based Hiking Club | Date: September 2019 | Duration: 3 days | Participants: 11 | Type: hiking, car camping
