The ultimate holiday lights bike ride is just south of Portland

This article is from Portlander and veteran group ride leader, Tom Howe.

Portland has Peacock Lane and Starkwood, but just to our south, the cities of Gladstone and Milwaukie also offer some incredible holiday displays in December. There are three that really stand out – the entire street of Ridgewood Drive, Schilling Lights on Lark, and Mitchells Land of Misfit Toys & Frosty’s Magical Land.

Last week, after the holiday tree lighting ceremony in downtown Milwaukie, I rode down the Trolley Trail to visit all three of these venues by following a seven-mile loop route starting at the municipal holiday tree in downtown Gladstone. This tree is conveniently located right at the southern end of the Trolley Trail. And the Trolley Trail can be linked with the 17^th Avenue Bike Path and the Springwater Corridor for a ride almost entirely on separated bike paths from central Portland all the way to Gladstone.

Starting at the Gladstone holiday tree the route takes you through the adjacent neighborhood over to the sharrowed bike lanes on Webster Road. From there it’s a right hand turn onto Ridgewood Drive where nearly all the houses are decorated. This street is similar to Starkwood in East Portland, consisting of a dead-end street and three cul-de-sacs on the west side. I rode all the way to the end of Ridgewood, then looped through the cul-de-sacs on the way out. It is worth noting that directly across Webster from Ridgewood Drive is Clayton Way where most of the houses are likewise holiday decorated.

Leaving Ridgewood Drive and continuing on Webster Road takes you out of Gladstone and into Milwaukie on the way to Schilling Lights on Lark. The route skirts around Lake Leona and Johnson City, which is nestled right next to the lake. At just 0.07 square miles in size, the residential Johnson City has the highest population density of any city in Oregon.

Turning left on SE Lark Avenue, the route takes you to Schilling Lights on Lark, one of most impressive animated light displays in the entire Portland region. The house and large yard are covered with programmed lights that dance in patterns with scenes from holiday classics like “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” and “Home Alone.” Those scenes are displayed on a giant pixel screen that completely covers the double garage doors. During my visit the song “Let It Go” from the movie “Frozen” was played along with spectacular dancing lights throughout the yard.

Just a couple blocks away is Mitchells Land of Misfit Toys & Frosty’s Magical Land. This is quite the contrast to Schilling, as there are no animated lights, and the illuminated lands have many cutout character displays from the 1960s holiday specials “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “Frosty the Snowman.”

I rode the I-205 path to complete the loop back to downtown Gladstone. This is a quick, 1.5-mile ride along the path with no stop signs encountered until reaching the southern end. The route concludes with a few blocks of riding through downtown Gladstone, where the street is adorned with holiday stars.

Since this route uses a portion of the I-205 path, you might wonder why not use that path to get down to the area rather than the Trolley Trail. I prefer the Trolley Trail as it is quiet and there are some holiday decorated houses along the way. But more importantly, it avoids the notorious one-mile gap on the path. This gap routes cyclists onto SE 82^nd Drive near where the Sunrise Expressway was completed back in 2016. Now 82^nd Drive is not to be confused with 82^nd Avenue. Unlike 82^nd Avenue, the gap on 82^ndDrive is a two-lane road with substandard bike lanes on both sides. The most difficult part is linking up with the orphan section of the I-205 path, as it requires going over the bridge where I-205 connects with Highway 212. If you do this route, ride the sidewalk over the bridge and use the three pedestrian signals when crossing the freeway ramps. Government officials are well aware of the I-205 gap, and plans are in place to eventually refine it with separated bike paths on both sides of SE 82^nd Drive.

I really enjoyed visiting these sites in Gladstone and Milwaukie, and hope others can visit them as well during the holiday season, by bike of course!