A trail run with blackberries and late summer flowers on Oregon’s Sauvie Island

Brian Mann | September 11, 2025

Blackberry brambles decorate the trail on Sauvie Island in Oregon. The trail leads past farm fields through forest to a wild stretch of beach along the Columbia River.

NEAR ST. HELENS, Ore. — It’s a hot September afternoon as I set off running past farm fields into the woods on Sauvie Island, which lies at the meeting of the Columbia and Willamette rivers.

It’s a perfect trail for running with 60-year-old knees, the forest floor soft with leaves and pine needles. The gentle path offers views of the vast Columbia River.

After a day of work, I love finding places like this, where I can turn off my brain and just move and breathe. On this day, I stumble across an unexpected delight: blackberry thickets so dense I have to dodge the thorns as I run.

The fruit is perfectly ripe, berries hanging thick and dark. I pick and eat, then run a little, but again and again the berries tempt me to slow down and snack.

Berries offer sweet temptation on a September trail run on Oregon's Sauvie Island. — Berries offer sweet temptation on a September trail run on Oregon’s Sauvie Island. (Brian Mann | NPR)

Finally I run on, my fingers stained purple. I can smell the river and the leaf dust of the trail kicked up by my running shoes. Afternoon sun ribbons through the high forest canopy. This island has deep history. It was busy with Multnomah Native villages through the 18th century, communities that were later swept away by European diseases. The American explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark also camped nearby on their expeditions in 1805 and 1806.

Tansy blossoms, goldenrod and Queen Anne's lace are the wildflowers of late summer in the Columbia River valley. — Tansy blossoms, goldenrod and Queen Anne’s lace are the wildflowers of late summer in the Columbia River valley. (Brian Mann | NPR)

I come out of the tunnel of trees into a beautiful, open green meadow, the wind blowing through grass. There are wildflowers on every side, tansy and Queen Anne’s lace and goldenrod, the bright colors of late summer. This is one of my favorite seasons for running. The heat has mellowed, but it’s not quite autumn. Kids are back in school, so the crowds in wild places like this have faded away.

A lighthouse on the Columbia River guides barges and other boat traffic. Sauvie Island's beaches can be crowded in high summer, but on this day it felt private and wild. — A lighthouse on the Columbia River guides barges and other boat traffic. Sauvie Island’s beaches can be crowded in high summer, but on this day it felt private and wild. (Brian Mann | NPR)

The trail takes me to one more delight: an old lighthouse and a long strand of empty sand beach. A barge rumbles past out on the river; otherwise, it feels private and peaceful. I strip off my running shoes and my sweaty T-shirt and dive in. The cold water feels amazing after the run, and I drift for a long time in the stillness.
https://www.nps.gov/articles/sauvieisland.htm

A late summer swim in the Columbia River off the beach of Sauvie Island in Oregon. (Brian Mann | NPR)

Transcript:

JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:

Late summer is blackberry season in the Pacific Northwest. NPR’s Brian Mann found a berry patch while out trail running on an island in Oregon’s Columbia River. He sent us this audio postcard.

(SOUNDBITE OF FOOTSTEPS THUDDING)

BRIAN MANN, BYLINE: It’s a hot September afternoon as I set off running past farm fields into the woods on Sauvie Island.

This is a perfect trail-running trail. It’s soft forest floor.

The path is flat and gentle with views of the sweeping Columbia River through the trees. After a day of work, I love finding places like this where I can turn off my brain for a while and just move and breathe. Today, I find an unexpected delight, blackberry thickets so dense I have to dodge the thorns as I run.

The fruit is ripe. I’m just picking and eating as I go. Oh, yeah. Just perfect timing. There we go.

(SOUNDBITE OF FOOTSTEPS THUDDING)

MANN: Again and again, the berries tempt me to slow down and snack. But I finally run on, my fingers stained purple. I can smell the river and the leaf dust of the trail kicked up by my running shoes. Afternoon sun sweeps through the high forest.

(SOUNDBITE OF FOOTSTEPS THUDDING)

MANN: This island has deep history. It was busy with Multnomah Native villages through the 18th century, communities that were later swept away by European diseases. The American explorers Lewis and Clark also camped nearby on their expedition in 1805 and 1806.

I’ve come out of the tunnel of trees into a beautiful, open, green meadow. The wind is blowing through the grass. Wildflowers on every side, tansy and Queen Anne’s lace. Bright late summer.

(SOUNDBITE OF FOOTSTEPS THUDDING)

MANN: I love running in this season, when the heat has mellowed but it’s not quite autumn. Kids are back in school, so the crowds in wild places like this have faded away.

(SOUNDBITE OF WATER LAPPING)

MANN: This trail on Sauvie Island takes me to an old lighthouse and a long ribbon of beach. A barge rumbles past out on the river, otherwise it’s private and still. So I strip off my running shoes and my T-shirt and dive in.

(SOUNDBITE OF WATER SPLASHING)

MANN: I am swimming in the Columbia River. I have this wild sand beach all to myself. And the cold water feels so good on my body after that run. Yeah, just wild. And the wind is kind of blowing over the water, islands stretching off in every direction.

(SOUNDBITE OF WATER SPLASHING)

MANN: Brian Mann, NPR News, in the Columbia River in St. Helens, Oregon.

(SOUNDBITE OF MINUTEMEN’S “COHESION”)