City of Ashland, Oregon - Parks and Recreation

Whether you're visiting from out-of-town or you're a local resident that enjoys spending time in our city's beautiful parks, there's plenty of educational fun to be had at North Mountain Park. Begin your visit in our welcoming lobby where you can pick up a general brochure and map of the park as well as peruse various interpretive materials. Check our bulletin boards for upcoming community classes before you move into the exhibit room. This season, our exhibit room features the map of the Ashland Watershed. (For more information, please see exhibits.) Our well-stocked Resource Room is always available for research and, while we don't check out materials to the general public, you'll find a quiet, peaceful study area where you can brush up on your favorite aspect of our local natural history.

Continue your visit outside in our beautifully maintained demonstration gardens. Interpretive booklets and signs are available to enhance your visit and understanding of these gardens. Check our habitat gardens and see if you can find birds, butterflies, lizards, or frogs. Take a seat in our pavilion where you might get an up-close look at birds visiting nearby feeders or the bird buffet garden.

Continuing down the main path will take you past two of our three ponds. Look for turtles, muskrat, ducks, and other waterfowl. As you make your way into the Natural Area, head towards the amphitheater on the right where you can explore our Native American village, complete with shade structure, hide tanning rack, and 'umma' or home. Kid-sized animal homes are also located within the vicinity of the amphitheater. Young visitors will have fun crawling into a pretend bear den, coyote den, hawk's nest, or onto the turtle basking rocks.

Just past the amphitheater, there is an access point where you can enjoy a moment of solitude next to Bear Creek. Beaver and otter are becoming more common visitors to the park, and occasionally we see Steelhead trout making their way up the creek in the fall.

To the left of the access point, you can travel along the Ethnobotanical Trail. Pick up a laminated booklet at the start of the trail and, with the help of plant signs, you can learn how the local Shasta Native Americans use a wide variety of plants in every aspect of their daily lives. Just to the right of the end of the Ethnobotanical Trail you will see the old barn. Between the barn and Lower Pond you will see an old pump and some hen boxes, reminders of a pioneer life. Pump some water and use the watering can to water the heirloom gardens next to the compost bins.

Behind the barn, you'll find our third and most accessible pond with stone steps leading down to the water's edge. Continuing along this path, you'll discover a second Bear Creek access point. You can continue to walk the park's nature trails and the bike path at a leisurely pace as you keep an eye out for wildlife, or at a quick clip and enjoy a brief workout while taking in the beauty and serenity of the Bear Creek corridor.

If your visit is a family outing, we have Discovery Kits available in the lobby. The kits will enhance everyone's visit as kids become explorers discovering the park's birds, rocks or aquatic insects. New kits will be available soon to enhance the pretend animal homes, the pioneer barn and the Native American village. Younger children will enjoy playing in our sand serpent sandbox, centrally located near the pavilion, or on one of our two playgrounds located along the bike path. Take part in CreatureQuest! A fun, place based adventure for all ages. First-time visitors to the park are often surprised at how much there is to do here, so plan on spending a few hours or even a day to take advantage of the many aspects of North Mountain Park. Enjoy your visit!