You'd like to take the kids hiking, but you're afraid you'll get lost in the wilderness and end up as a story in the Metro section.
That's assuming you can manage to navigate the Forest Service access roads to even arrive at the trailhead.
Here are a few hikes for the directionally challenged. Easy to find, easy to follow.
Once you're hooked on hiking, you may want to invest some time and diligence in learning to use a map and compass -- because I had to rack my brain to come up with these hikes.
Fortunately, though there are not many "can't get lost" trails, some are very pretty indeed. Some are even precipitous. Beacon Rock is one of the best, because of its eagle-eye view of the Columbia River Gorge from the top.
Find it by driving State Route 14 on the Washington side of the gorge. Watch for little green signs along the side of the road. These are mile markers from the Interstate Bridge in Vancouver. Park at mile 38.43 (about a half mile past the 38-mile marker), directly off the highway on the south side.
There will also be a big brown sign that says "Beacon Rock State Park," a sure clue that you have arrived.
Walk a short way back along the river side of the highway toward Vancouver to another sign that notes the start of the trail up the rock. You will cross 25 bridges and make 47 switchbacks as you climb. And don't worry about getting lost or making a wrong turn. If you blunder off trail, the 850-foot fall will surely take away all your worries.
This gets a bit more complicated, because you don't get to park right along the highway like you do when visiting Beacon Rock. Instead, drive east of Portland on Interstate 84 to exit 41. This is 41 miles from where I-84 intersects I-5 in Portland. Turn right at the exit and drive as far as you can, which is about a mile. This will land you at the trailhead.
Put on some boots and head south on the trail (for the truly directionally challenged, "south" means walk away from the Columbia River), along the bottom of a steep canyon that makes side trails impractical. If it's a nice day, you won't have to worry about getting lost, because you can just follow the several hundred other hikers who will be there.
Why so many? Because Eagle Creek is a very beautiful place. Check out Punch Bowl Falls, High Bridge and Tunnel Falls and see if you agree.
Lincoln City's Roads End is one of the best "wild in the city" places to walk on the Oregon coast, especially for the directionally challenged. Also soothing is the fact it is not called "Dead End."
Find it by heading west out of Portland on Oregon 18. Follow the stream of gamblers heading to Spirit Mountain Casino. Quell the temptation to turn in, as you normally would, and continue to Chinook Winds Casino, at the north end of Lincoln City. But squash the urge to stop there, too.
Keep driving past the second casino, north along the Pacific, the wet spot to the west. Park at Roads End state wayside. Walk down to the beach, turn right and beachcomb north to some tidepools at the base of impassible cliffs. You won't even know Lincoln City is only a seagull's cry away.
Return the way you came. Just watch out for the incoming tide.