Sharrows to Sparrows

North Portland Sharrow — Photo from BikePortland.org (Jonathan Maus)

By Whitney Dorer

This past Saturday was the first in a series of three “Sharrows to Sparrows” bike rides put on by Mike Houck, Director of the Urban Greenspaces Institute, and Greg Raisman, of Portland Bureau of Transportation.

Instead of my normal Saturday morning routine of gearing up for tree planting in one corner of the city or another, I put on my helmet and hopped on my bike. I was off to explore The Intertwine, the Portland-Vancouver region’s system of parks, trails, and natural areas. This first ride highlighted various projects and natural areas along a loop connecting Pier Park to Smith and Bybee Lakes.

Our path was led by sharrows, the 4-foot by 6-foot shared lane pavement markings that Portland uses to identify Neighborhood Greenways. We used these sharrows to find our way to some sparrows and other amazing displays of wildlife.

50 new street trees along N Central St — North Central Street Neighborhood Greenway gets 50 more street trees, our way of Greening up the Greenway! (FOT file)

Along our ride, we stopped at bioswales and intersection treatments that are used to slow traffic and absorb rainwater. Greg Raisman explained the importance of Neighborhood Greenways as connectors between schools, parks and wildlife habitats while also providing access to business and transit. We heard from neighbors along North Central Street about how the community has been involved and how they have benefited from the traffic calming.

To continue in the efforts of this traffic calming and community building, Friends of Trees planted 50 trees along North Central in early April—our way of helping Green up the Greenway and making it a nicer place for bikers and pedestrians to be!

A tour of Village Market in New Columbia. Be sure to check out the artwork above the produce section at some point - all painted by neighbors! (Whitney Dorer)

We followed to the end of N Central and made our way to Village Market, a community-run grocery store in New Columbia. We heard about all the work it took to make the store a reality. It now brings affordable, fresh and healthy products to a community that was previously a food desert.

After our stop for snacks, we were off for more nature adventuring. We crossed the Columbia Slough, biking over a bridge where cliff swallows have made their home. Seeing the water and all the wildlife made me dream of a daycation canoeing along the Slough. As we approached Smith and Bybee lakes, Mike Houck continued his outbursts of bird calls and gave us tricks to remember certain birds. A pair of binoculars was helpful for seeing a distant osprey nest and the three osprey circling above us.

With so many great questions from the crowd, we all had something to learn. We were even joined by Jonathan Maus taking photos for BikePortland.org and Steve Duin from The Oregonian, who wrote about the ride on OregonLive!

Smith and Bybee Lakes — Mike Houck introducing the group to Smith & Bybee lakes. (Whitney Dorer)

Think about joining one of the next two Sharrows to Sparrows rides. On May 11, meet at 9:00 am at the Vera Katz Eastbank Esplanade for a ride around SE Portland, or on June 1, meet at 9:00 am at Gabriel Park for a ride around SW Portland. It is a great opportunity to get out and enjoy the great system we have here in Portland for biking and enjoying nature!

–Dorer is Neighborhood Trees Manager for Friends of Trees.