Cascade Canyon Trail Exhibit

Cascade Canyon Trail connects Cascade Crest to the Trillium Family Farm, passing through Black Bear Ridge, Eagle Canyon and Cascade Stream and Pond. Cascade Canyon Trail is part of the $36 million Great Northwest exhibit, which includes Cascade Crest (opened 1998), Black Bear Ridge (opened 2007), Eagle Canyon (opened 2004), Cascade Stream and Pond (opened 1982), Cougar Crossing (opened 2006), Trillium Creek Family Farm (opened 2000), Elk Meadow (opened 1993) and Steller Cove (opened 2000). The Cascade Canyon Trail was designed and managed in-house by the zoo's construction and maintenance division.

Take a walk down the trail...

Cascade Canyon Trail takes you from Cascade Crest's mountain goat exhibit deeper into the forest until you come to a suspension bridge flanked by tall trees. At an elevated viewpoint, you enjoy a panoramic view down the ravine. Your view? Black Bear Ridge, a naturalistic habitat for American black bears.

This exhibit is a far cry from the old "grotto" style exhibits. The new environments were planned with the animals' health, well-being and reproduction in mind. The black bears live naturally, with trees to climb and a beautiful stream to provide sunny, sandy riverbanks -- a favorite napping spot.

Continuing on the Trail, you'll come to a clearing where you can see both bobcats and black bears in a rustic covered viewing structure.

Passing beneath the shady canopies of cedars and firs, you encounter a large overturned tree and root ball. When you take a closer look, this partially hollowed out log is actually a heated den where you might come nose-to-nose with bobcats through a viewing window.

A stroll through the woods leads to fork where you can choose to explore Eagle Canyon, or enter the Cascade Stream and Pond exhibits and out into the Marsh Aviary, where you catch another glimpse of the black bears moving about on the hillside.

As you reach the flatlands between the canyon ridges, a short densely planted trail loop leads you to Cougar Crossing. Watch these big cats through a wide opening, with just piano wire separating you from the animals. Another path leads to a rocky, heated cougar den, viewed through a window. The next turn gives you a magnificent view of the ravine, looking upwards toward mountain goats, with black bears in the foreground.

The final stop on the Cascade Canyon Trail leaves you at the Trillium Creek Family Farm. The farm is unlike anywhere else in the zoo, allowing children of all ages hands-on experience with farm animals. Teenage volunteers gain practical experience in animal care and public speaking, in orderto teach visitors about farm life and the rich agricultural heritage of the Pacific Northwest.