James Woodhill Park at Rocky Butte

What’s there not to love? You can drive up the road straight to the entrance, or you can bike the hill if you’re feeling gutsy. Didn’t have any problems finding parking around the perimeter. This is a great place to picnic or sunbathe, or get in some acroyoga while drinking in views of Mt. Hood in the backdrop. Fantastic views on a clear day!

James Woodhill Park has the best views of Mt. Hood and Mt. Saint Helens in Portland. Drive to the top of Rocky Butte. There is plenty of parking up there. The park resembles a fort. There is a telephone station in a small clearing at the top. There is a soft reddish surface that resembles a track. However, the park is for the views rather than exercise. I had the privilege of enjoying the view at sunset. I definitely recommend stopping by at this time of day. The mountains appear serene at sunset.
If you are traveling the Portland area and looking for recommendations, please see

This is quite a gem. You drive up a winding road passing by a massive church complex with dome-​shaped buildings and find yourself at a pretty impressive rock fort. From atop, you have a pretty amazing view of Portland and can watch planes land and take off. Definitely come on a clear day. A downside is there’s not that much to do but look out and perhaps snap a photo or two… kids might find it a little dull beyond more than 20mins. For adults though who’ve just loaded up on brunch, it’s a nice place to hang out and chat with friends.

Beautiful place to catch a sunrise or sunset! A must visit when in Portland, Oregon for the view.

Beautiful views and sunset. Park on side of road and walk up stairs. I took a picnic and sat in the grass. Can’t beat the view.

A fun hangout on a clear day! Bring a picnic!!!

James Woodhill Park is mostly worthy of the metropolitan area which it is a tribute to. The neighborhood has big houses for the rich, so you’ll have to drive down the hill to find a store. Parking is fairly easy and is done on the side of the road, as you might find with other attractions. On top of a hill, you can see much of Portland, even the majesty of Mount Hood.
I parked and then walked up the hill. The structure was lovely, but grand is dare minimally reserved for the forts more essential to state history, and probably better suited to the castles of England. The top is essentially a big circle with plenty of grass for picnics. I walked around the edges, and while part only showcases some minimally impressive trees, one side shows us Portland, Vancouver and Mount Hood. Even the IKEA near the airport is visible.
This is a nice park. It is worthwhile to see at least once. For something more entertaining, I’d suggest a trek to Washington Park and then going to the nearby neighborhoods on light rail afterwards.

Meh, great place if there are respectful people. I’ve been up here numerous of times and if you go after dark on a night, the place is filled with people making out. There are a lot of teenagers. It isn’t just one couple, it is multiple couples in separate corners of the park. It is always an awkward situation and scares me. This has happened to me two times (the only two times I have been up there at night) when I have gone up there to check the view at night, now I just enjoy the view from my car. The view is gorgeous and it is located right in the city, but I can’t stand some of the people that go up there.

Nice views from atop of what looks like an old stone fort. On clear days you can see downtown, the airport, the river, Hood, St. Helens, and more.
You can drive right up to the entrance. Decent amount of parking, especially since I doubt it even gets too crowded.
It’s free, so that’s cool.
Wheelchair accessible via semi-​steep ramp at one end.

I recently discovered James Woodhill Park at Rocky Butte, which is in walking distance of my neighborhood.
There is a place where you can park if you so wish to drive instead, but most people elect to walk or even ride their bikes! The hike to the top is relatively easy, and you get a tour of a lot of the great homes along the Rocky Butte Scenic Drive.
There is a great view of Mt. Hood, Mt. Saint Helens, and the Portland skyline when you reach the top! You might even see a plane ascending or descending into PDX.
I look forward to going back in the summer and enjoying a picnic on one of the welcoming patches of green grass and also going in the evening to catch the sunset.

Rocky Butte is a great place for you to go for several different reasons such as mini picnics, city lookout point, crying, reminiscing and the like. I was first introduced in high school along with my {back then} friends and bball teammates. We would all carpool and follow each other especially for lunch sometimes since I attended Madison High :) its also known to be a «high school age» make out spot and yes there are plenty young people that frequent here in Spring/​Summer.
Rocky Butte is a great look out point too, which you can see Mt. Hood very clear as well as most Portland bridges and just about all sky scrapers downtown. On a clear Summer day, the view is such as a postcard one would see on a stand for sale in a market.
In early fall of 2010, my friend Perry took me to Olive Garden, we got take out and headed to the Butte. The weather was warm and beautiful, we laid a throw blanket on the bench and ate our food while enjoying the sunset. Great conversation and cool way to spend an off evening until it was all ruined when a MOUSE ran diagonally across from us coming from my side of feet. I jumped up spilling some of my Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara I finished what I had left standing up while Perry sat eating and laughing at me for not sitting back down :) I still had an awesome evening with him and we enjoyed each other’s company alike. All in all the Butte is a chill place to enjoy alone or with others~take your pic…
Remember to take in the great views of homes you will pass while going up the hill.

From the Unilocal pictures this place looked amazing! From the outside it looked nice because it looked like a castle but as you walk up the path, it was just a open area with a view of the city. Before stopping by this place, my family and I were on the other side of the city at the Aerial Tram. It didn’t wow me as much, but it is definitely a nice view of the city!

Mad props to my buddy that introduced me to this place! The views of the city and the Cascades are really stunning! I can see why this place is so popular for picnics and evening dates!
I do like the stone ramparts that circle the park — it gives the feeling of a fortified position. Actually, I kept thinking that it would be a great site for the ultimate game of capture the flag! Just plant a flag atop the old tower that served as an aircraft beacon!
This park is a testament to the great works of the WPA!
STAIRWAY
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— –O – /​/​–
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O X O —-LANTERN
| \
| \
O O
| \
| \
O O
| [ ] \
| \
O O
\ /​
\ /​
O_​_​| |_​_​_​O
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ACCESS ROAD
X = COMPASS
[ ] = AERIAL BEACON

I had the opportunity to visit this place in the morning and at night. In the morning there were some locals exercising and it was very quiet and peaceful. The drive up I saw so many beautiful homes and the view at the top is breathtaking. It was a beautiful clear day. When I returned at night there were a lot of people. It was loud but still fun. My only complaint is that trees are blocking the downtown view. It would be nice if they got a trim so the view could be better.

Very nice views of Portland, especially the mountains. We’ve been here at sunset and gotten some good pictures!

Apparently, this place is a «make-​out point» for highschoolers… It was nice to see all of Portland and Mt. Hood even without making out and during the day lol. Check it out if you’re in the area, it’s pretty nice. I hear it’s really nice at night with all the lights and such. Will have to come back eventually.

Beautiful place to go at night if you are a fan of stargazing. Sure, there is a little light pollution from the city lights below (which is also amazingly gorgeous), but it is dim enough to see more constellations and stars than you would in your own backyard. In terms of stargazing I think I like the Vista House I’m Crown Point better, but rocky butte is still very beautiful. Just a word of warning… if you are going late at night, you are going to see many cars with fogged up windows parked along the road (what could they possibly be doing in there? Hahahaha!) so you might wanna find a parking spot that isn’t right next to an already parked car.

For a good view in Portland, everyone seems to go to Council Crest (and everyone should, because it’s beautiful), but Rocky Butte is also pretty spectacular. All you have to do is park your car, climb a few steps, and then you can see all of the mountains which Portlanders like point to and proudly name (in a very toddler-​like way) for visitors. The radio tower in the middle doesn’t really detract from the beauty. It’s also kind of cool that you’re almost eye level with the planes heading down to PDX. And you are very close to the Lanvin bakery, and all the chocolate croissants you can eat.

I’m always amazed at how many people who have lived in PDX for years, if not their whole lives, haven’t been to Rocky Butte (I don’t know of anyone that calls it «James Woodhill Park)!
It’s got, hands down, one of the best views of the city, a ton of parking, and plenty of space for people to walk around taking pictures, sit in the grassy area for a picnic, or for couples to have a romantic time watching the sunset.
And it’s the perfect distance for most people in downtown or SE/​NE PDX to jog or bike here on a nice day!
The radio tower in the middle is a little off-​putting if you’re looking for a more natural park, but in the middle of the city that’s not an easy thing to get.
If you haven’t been yet, check it out on a nice day!!!

It only took us six years of residence in this city, but it dawned on us that we had never made it to be end of the road in the Rocky Butte neighborhood. And since it’s a steep, slightly precarious upward drive, we figured the summit might provide some pretty natural eye candy and lesser-​known hiking trails.
We were right about the views. We were wrong about the hiking. There are stairs leading up from the street to the park. That’s your hike. Or maybe there are some unmarked walking trails around, but they’re not visible from the park itself. But if you just want to gape at Mt. Hood and the tiny city streets surrounding it without moving your feet too much, this is as good a spot as any.
On the other hand, because the ground is level, it’s an ideal spot to picnic and hang out. I would say it feels removed from the din of the city, but when it’s dry and sunny outside, that’s just not true. There were lots of groups doing weekend outdoorsy things, so if you’re looking for some discreet open air shenanigans of a narcotic or sexy nature, you’ll need to clear it with the church group picnic and the Russian family reunion already taking place. I’m sure you get more of a solitary experience around this time of the year.
Also, according to the Interwebs, the real name of this swath of green is the James Wood Hill Park at Rocky Butte. Whew, glad we cleared that up.