A cold, rainy day in mid-December. Seemed like a good time to do the 4.2-mile loop hike in the Tualatin Hills Nature Park a few miles west of home in the heart of the city of Beaverton. The 222-acre Park surrounds the confluence of Cedar Mill Creek and Beaverton Creek.

It is a remarkably diverse wildlife preserve with wetlands, forests, ponds and streams. The trails’ names tell the story – – – Oak, Creek, Old Wagon, Vine Maple, Big Fir, Cougar, Chickadee, Cedar Grove, Ash, Serviceberry, Big Pond, Trillium Loop and Ponderosa Loop.

To steal a line from Tom Cruise (can he really be cast as Jack Reacher?), it was not a target-rich environment for a photographer. The incessant rain kept most of the birds and animals under cover.

Outside of a few mallards and one shy squirrel, I had almost no company on my hike. Nevertheless, it’s always a pleasant place to visit.

Looking up at a Gray Squirrel in a tree

Bon Jovi was here?

Blackberry leaves with their bright autumn colors

Small pond dappled by rain drops

Mushrooms

Wooden bridge over one of the creeks