This Trail In Fort Stevens Is The Creepiest Hike In Oregon

While we’re all for lacing up our boots and hitting the trails, there are some hikes here in the Beaver State that aren’t for the faint of heart. We’re not talking about advanced-level treks; we’re talking about creepy hikes — excursions that lead through ghost towns and abandoned places in Oregon. Trails like the Fort Stevens, Jetty Loop, and Fort Steven Ridge Trail. This nine-mile loop trail might well lead through one of the most beguiling coastal landscape in the state, but it’s a haunting sort of beauty that will take catch you off guard. You see, this trail winds through an abandoned battery park, around earthen forts and mysterious marshland, and even past a real-life ghost ship, making it easily the creepiest hike in Oregon.

In a past life, Fort Stevens State Park was the primary military defense installation in the Harbor Defense System at the mouth of the Columbia River. The fort was in service for 84 years, from roughly the Civil War through the conclusion of World War II.

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Today, Fort Stevens is a 4,300-acre state park that’s a marvelous place to hike and explore, and the Fort Stevens, Jetty Loop, and Fort Steven Ridge Trail is the best trail to truly experience all this park has to offer… and we do mean all.

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Because in addition to its immense scenic beauty and historic significance, Fort Stevens is rumored to be one of the most haunted places in Oregon.

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As you traverse the Fort Stevens, Jetty Loop, and Fort Steven Ridge Trail, which loops around the entire park, you’ll marvel at the old fort, the only Civil War-era earthen fort on the West Coast.

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But you won’t be able to shake the unsettling sensation while you wander through the old fort. There’s something undeniably eerie about these old fortresses, built into the Earth and left to decay.

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And there’s also the turn-of-the-century, concrete artillery gun batteries, their empty halls holding so much history… and secrets. There are accounts of a man dressed in a 1940s-era military uniform walking the trail with a lantern in hand. Will you see him?

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Of course, it’s not just the eponymous fort that makes this hike in Oregon so darn creepy. The marshland and sand dunes are eerily quiet and mysterious…

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…and then, of course, there’s the abandoned ghost ship.

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The Peter Iredale shipwreck on the Oregon Coast is one of the state’s most iconic – and notoriously haunted – sites.

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A former shipping vessel, in 1906, the Peter Iredale encountered inclement weather while en route to the Columbia River, and the crew had to bail out. The ship’s fateful journey ended on the shores of what’s now known as Fort Stevens State Park, where it remains to this day.

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Ghosts or not, tackling this loop trail is a bucket-list must for many Oregon hikers. Will you be among the brave to say you’ve hiked this trail?

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Have you hiked the Fort Stevens, Jetty Loop, and Fort Steven Ridge Trail in Oregon before? Did you see the abandoned bunkers on this creepy hike in Oregon? Doesn’t this take the award as the creepiest hike in Oregon? Are there any others you’d like to nominate for this spooky superlative? Share the tales of your ghost hunting expeditions — we’d love to hear about your experiences!

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Fort Stevens campground has been called Oregon’s most haunted campsite, and visitors have claimed to hear footsteps near their tents in the night… with no one to be seen. Would you be brave enough to camp here overnight?

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Address: Fort Stevens State Park, 1675 Peter Iredale Rd, Hammond, OR 97121, USA

The OIYS Visitor Center

Creepiest Hike in Oregon January 27, 2023 Sarah M. What are some other creepy places in Oregon? There are some truly spine-tingling places in Oregon that will make your imagination run wild. Some of the most notoriously creepy places in Oregon include:

Wildwood Trail and Lower Macleay Trail Loop (AKA The Witch’s Castle) - Portland, Oregon. This 3.2-mile trail is located just outside Portland, and is a straightforward trek all can enjoy – provided you aren’t spooked by ghost stories! The trail is located in the Macleay Park, part of Portland’s beautiful Forest Park. This lovely little preserve offers a variety of trails for hiking, biking, and horseback riding… as well as a real-life witch’s castle! The story behind these Oregon ruins is one of high drama and heartache, and we don’t want to spoil it, so you need to learn about it for yourself! The Shanghai Tunnels in Portland, Oregon. Rose City was one of the most dangerous ports in the U.S. during the early 19th century; this PNW town was the epicenter of an illicit and inhumane maritime practice known as shanghaiing. While originally designed for storage and transportation, the Shanghai Tunnels were also used to traffic – or “shanghai” – men from the streets of Portland to work as unpaid laborers on ship crews. The men were drugged and then dragged into the tunnels; many toiled for years before being released, and some perished deep in this underworld. This is a very dark and violent time in Oregon’s history, so it should come as no surprise that these tunnels are now said to be haunted by the aggrieved spirits of the captives who died in the dark recesses beneath the city.

The OIYS Visitor Center

Creepiest Hike in Oregon

January 27, 2023

Sarah M.

What are some other creepy places in Oregon? There are some truly spine-tingling places in Oregon that will make your imagination run wild. Some of the most notoriously creepy places in Oregon include:

The OIYS Visitor Center

There are some truly spine-tingling places in Oregon that will make your imagination run wild. Some of the most notoriously creepy places in Oregon include:

Wildwood Trail and Lower Macleay Trail Loop (AKA The Witch’s Castle) - Portland, Oregon. This 3.2-mile trail is located just outside Portland, and is a straightforward trek all can enjoy – provided you aren’t spooked by ghost stories! The trail is located in the Macleay Park, part of Portland’s beautiful Forest Park. This lovely little preserve offers a variety of trails for hiking, biking, and horseback riding… as well as a real-life witch’s castle! The story behind these Oregon ruins is one of high drama and heartache, and we don’t want to spoil it, so you need to learn about it for yourself!
The Shanghai Tunnels in Portland, Oregon. Rose City was one of the most dangerous ports in the U.S. during the early 19th century; this PNW town was the epicenter of an illicit and inhumane maritime practice known as shanghaiing. While originally designed for storage and transportation, the Shanghai Tunnels were also used to traffic – or “shanghai” – men from the streets of Portland to work as unpaid laborers on ship crews. The men were drugged and then dragged into the tunnels; many toiled for years before being released, and some perished deep in this underworld. This is a very dark and violent time in Oregon’s history, so it should come as no surprise that these tunnels are now said to be haunted by the aggrieved spirits of the captives who died in the dark recesses beneath the city.