Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge Reviews

Great place for a hike and to watch the birds. Take good binoculars and a snack.

A little overkill for me. That is because I visit these rec areas for the trails, exercise. Not all the staffed areas.

It was disappointing that many of the trails are closed over the winter resulting in crowds cramming the not so interesting perreferal paths.

Open 365 days a year, the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge is a popular place to hike just 10 minutes outside the city. Special hybrid parking spots are near the center. Take along your camera and binoculars, and wear a comfortable pair of walking shoes. The complex features five habitats and an Observation Deck. There is a wildlife photography blind available by reservation only. It features excellent trails rain or shine any time of year. Certain areas of the national wildlife refuge are off-limits from October through March, the traditional migration and nesting time. The informative Wildlife Center is open Tuesday through Sunday, and has an indoor viewing area with telescopes for viewing a variety of wildlife, including an eagle nesting area. Friendly staff will tell you what you can see during the day you visit, and can answer your questions. There is a group meeting and lunch area for field trips near the parking lot.

I love strolling the paths in this refuge. As others have noted it's pretty flat so you won't get a real workout, but most of the time you can see a great variety of wildlife. Be aware that during migration season they greatly restrict the trails you can walk on.

I had a few hours to kill on a business trip to Portland. This nature refuge was pretty close to where I was staying. I enjoyed walking around the trail for some exercise and appreciation of nature.

Excellent!

This former farmland was floodplain/riparian land now reverted back to riparian is well managed allowing for walking, education and, of course, wildlife reservation.

Shhhh, don't tell too many people. Word will get out and it will be too crowded.

Really easy hike! Gorgeous trails, and very well maintained!

Fun place to go walk around, learn about the different wildlife and enjoy family time together

Good area to take an afternoon walk. Certain areas are resticted based on the month. The trails are not dog, bike, or jog friendly. Overall there are far better trails in Oregon but this one is fairly close to Beaverton and Tigard area.

Great bird viewing during season....nice walking out of season.

Great place to just walk around and explore nature, just don't expect to see many animals

Good place to take an easy walk. Lots of birds and nice views of the river. Facilities not open right now so keep that in mind.

This was a nice place to walk with well maintained trails. It is easily accessed from the highway, and parking is convenient. Some of the trails were closed for the season, but they are scheduled to open again in May. We saw some birds and salamanders.

My fav escape in the Metro area. Trails through wetland and forest (though some bits are closed during migratory bird season). Come at sunset for a great view :)

We love it here! Great place to go walkinh a d explore in any weather!

This is a beautiful location to run and take long walks and think.

Very nice place. I can only give it 4 stars due to the poison oak on the discovery trails. I would recommend pants, or staying on the main trail if you are prone to reaction.

I love this place. Great getaway from Portland for a morning or half-day trip. Visitor center is quite educational and a good selection from the gift shop.
Love the bird life there!
Only issue is the trails would be perfect for running, but it's understandably not allowed.

Nice hiking trails year-round and plenty of observation desks. If you bring your binoculars you can get the most of the views.

Very nice reserve, the women in the visitors center were very friendly and helpful

Great beautiful place, they are doing a great job in keeping it real and clean!

Great easy paths for kids. Great nature watching and listening.

Great place to enjoy nature, water life, animals, birds. Hiking is very good and interesting. Make this a part of your trip. Kids love it, too. Interesting facts inside. Know more about your wonderful State of Oregon and it's inhabitants. Gift shop, rest stop, clean. Beautiful views.

It was awesome, but didn't stay long, because of weather, but looks like a great park.

Love, love,love this place. Cant say anything but great things about it. Nice viewing platforms, friendly staff, great walking trails, tons of wildlife. If your driving there coming north from sherwood it can be a bit tricky as you have a short turn lane and have to do a u-turn. But easily do able.

Very cool place to see wildlife and the beauty of Oregon! Great trails and easy for beginners and kids as well!

Beautiful nature walk, soltitude for serenity...good place to refresh and replenish yourself...its 4 miles along the whole refuge to walk with plenty of birds, snakes, chipmunks, and my favorite a family of gorgeous bald eagles raising their young one that I was toldshould be learning to fly anyday now...have to see it!! This place is awesome for the nature lover..

We saw so much wildlife there! A doe and her 2 newborn fawn. Skunks and their little pack of babies skunks, 2 beavers, abundance of birds. Can't wait to see it during the fall.

Great place to escape the city and take a peaceful walk. I never see any trash left on the trails.

Beautiful, but never can quite escape the noise of the highway.

This is a awesome Nature Preserve that is roughly eighteen hundred acres so there is plenty of room to wonder as long as you stay on the beaten path. I would definitely recommend checking the rules before entering The Preserve.
Remember pets are not allowed it is a nature preserve.
This is wonderful for photographers and bird watchers there is a blind to observe birds and wildlife. Every time I have walked here I have seen wildlife.
The seasonal Trail is roughly 3 miles from the start at the parking lot as far as the trail that's open year-round I am not sure but it is shorter.
I would recommend this for a tranquil stroll.

A well kept up park. Better than so many others i visited around the country. Not perfect though

Great place to take a walk or a long hike in natural habitat. The volunteers are friendly and knowledgeable. Watch your blood pressure go down.

It's got some construction areas as of Sept 2019, but was still a nice place for a walk. There were not as many birds as I expected.

A great place with great staff. I see new species of animal every time a visit

I go here on a regular basis through the summer. There is a wide variety of birds to watch. The sunset here is very beautiful.

Nice mated pair of bald eagles with a nest right in the middle of the refuge. Were there once when tons of little garter snakes trying to warm themselves in the fall sun.

Smaller refuge surrounded by city. Great nature center, nice artwork

Absolutely Love it there, been a million times, if ya look close you can find lots of Yew trees,, I have seen deer and a coyote pup there

A beautiful and underrated place to walk and enjoy nature. Our resident eagles welcome you to come and get some wonderful photos.

A fantastic place to visit with great amenities. Good hiking trails that are nice and flat.

Nice trail and friendly people inside the informational building!

I love this refuge, always has a wide variety of avian wildlife to watch in their natural habitat. The staff have always been kind to my service dog and I (and they are aware that service dogs are permitted in the refuge). They put the health of the wildlife first and that's important to me.

My wife and I love to go on walks here when the weather cooperates. The trails are as close to flat as it gets - can't call it a hike - but the scenery is quite lovely. The only downside is that the school field trips on the weekdays can make the main trail a bit crowded at times (weekday mid-mornings).

William and Michelle are fantastic! We walked right in to the visitor center and they got us all set up. They gave us a discovery backpack full of really useful information binoculars and fun stuff for the kids to identify along the trail. I highly recommend getting the binoculars in the discovery back they changed our experience tremendously especially because we brought little kids. You can do all the paths with the stroller as they are crushed granite. There was something new around each corner and I was very impressed with how well the trails were maintained giving that it is the end of January. I highly recommend coming here just to get some fresh air and a good walk about with the kids. We will definitely be coming back!

Probably wrong time to visit but hardly any wildlife here in mid September. Walk was relaxing. Not as large as some of the wildlife refuges I've been at. Maybe worth a stop if you're in the area and have seen time to kill.

Beautiful, scenic, and tranquil. A great place to go bird watching.

The national wildlife reserve has beautiful walking paths. The visitor's center was closed when I visited, but it was a great place to take in nature with an easy stroll.

This wildlife refuge is a delightful place for people to take a relaxing walk, and hopefully, see the local residents. The year-round trail is about a mile long, and is made of fine gravel on nice level ground. During the summer, a longer service road with somewhat coarser gravel follows a 3 mile trip around the perimeter of the property. The seasonal closure is to give the animals the space all to themselves for their nesting seasons.
This is former farmland that is being allowed to return to its original state of being a wetlands floodplain.
We visited during the summer, and most of the wildlife we ended up seeing was on the service road in the more remote parts of the refuge. We spotted deer, a hawk, egrets, herons, geese, nutria, and heard lots of birds that were keeping a respectful distance.
During the pandemic, all the buildings (visitor center, ranger station, and restrooms) were closed, half of the parking lot was roped off, and there were two portable restrooms available. At the end of our walk, we wandered to a space between the visitor center and the ranger station, finding a shaded bench with a view of the larger pond - it's a view worth seeking out whether the buildings are open or not.
They have done a wonderful job of allowing people to visit and enjoy a space that is not really intended for them.

A nice place to take a hike and view wildlife. Also, the facilities are very nice.

A great, very accessible place for a bird-watching nature hike. Saw lots of birds just after daybreak, as well as rabbits, chipmunks, nutria, and a couple of deer.

Had a blast at the place. Such a beautiful environment. Great place to go for a nice walk

The call of the wild goose. Ybe fresh air a open vistas.

We went to watch the sunset at the end of a hot day. We saw lots of birds, several deer, nutria, and frogs as well as a beautiful pink sunset.

This should be a great place to visit in spring or fall. July is not a good time.

Good wildlife center with great views of migratory birds (and scopes).

Great nature preserve. A nice place to take a short hike, view birds, and just escape into nature. No fees!

Such a quiet, great place to view wildlife in the area. Always interesting things to see.

Very nice walk in the trees saw two young deer and several birds.

Great place for a walk.

Refuges like these are such a treasure. The service and education they provide are indispensable.

Parking was ample, facilities were clean. I wish they day was nicer but that couldn t be helped.

Beautiful. But be warned, These are not giraffes in the back field.