Lacamas Lake Park

Location: Camas, Clark County.

Length: Round Lake loop trail (1.2 miles) is part of a six-mile trail system.

Level of difficulty: Gentle-to-moderately steep dirt/gravel trail (paved flat portion from parking lot south to a dam).

Setting: This impressive 312-acre park even makes it into certain Portland guidebooks. The Round Lake trail loop near the parking lot offers an excellent introduction to this large park. Note that the trail crosses over the dam soon after its beginning (otherwise you'll wander off toward the nearby high school), and then rises high above the lake.

The park has a unique and fascinating natural history. At the end of the last Ice Age, failing ice dams near the front of receding glaciers unleashed catastrophic floods, carrying walls of water more than 500 feet high down the Columbia Gorge. The water scoured out depressions high on the hills that later became lakes, including Lacamas Lake and Round Lake.

Highlights: About mid-May, the meadow off the upper part of the Round Lake trail blooms with blue camas lilies, the town's namesake, and once an important part of the Native American diet. An educational kiosk near the parking lot details the water-resource management (and mismanagement) of the 43,000-acre Lacamas Lake watershed, long dominated by the town's lumber mill. The Two Rivers Heritage Museum in nearby Washougal (across from the Pendleton mill) offers a look at more of the area's lumber-mill history.

Facilities: Seasonal restrooms, fishing and playground.

Restrictions: Leash and scoop laws in effect.

Directions: From Interstate 5 in Vancouver, Wash., take Highway 14 east to Camas along the Columbia River. Turn left on Highway 500, go 1 mile, and turn right on Northeast Third Avenue. In two blocks, turn left on Northeast Garfield Street, and in .3 mile turn right on Northeast Everett Street. In 1 mile, turn right into the second entrance of the parking lot (if full, turn right on the next street).

For more information: 360-619-1111 or www.co.clark.wa.us/parks.

Cathy McDonald, a Renton-based freelance writer, is a regular contributor to Northwest Weekend.