Fanno Creek

Fanno Farmhouse, the restored family home, is a Century Farm on the National Register of Historic Places and is one of 16 urban parks in a narrow corridor along the creek.

Although heavily polluted, the creek supports aquatic life, including coastal cutthroat trout (leopard spotted) in its upper reaches.

Watershed councils such as the Fans of Fanno Creek and government agencies have worked to limit pollution and to restore native vegetation in riparian zones.

Shortly thereafter and in quick succession, it enters Washington County and the unincorporated community of Raleigh Hills, crosses under Route 10, and receives Sylvan Creek on the right.

Near the southern end of Greenway Park, the creek passes under Oregon Route 210 (Scholls Ferry Road), and enters Tigard about 5 miles (8 km) from the mouth.

[14] The slopes at the headwaters of Fanno Creek consist mainly of Columbia River Basalt exposed in ravines but otherwise covered by up to 25 feet (8 m) of wind-deposited silt.

[9][15] In 2015, Portland's Bureau of Environmental Services (BES) began issuing annual "report cards" for watersheds or fractions thereof that lie within the city.

Hydrology grades depend on the amount of pavement and other impervious surfaces in the watershed and the degree to which its streams flow freely, not dammed or diverted.

Water-quality grades are based on measurements of dissolved oxygen, E-coli bacteria, temperature, suspended solids, and substances such as mercury and phosphorus.

[18] In 2015, the BES grades for the Fanno Creek watershed fraction within Portland are hydrology, C; water quality, C+; habitat, B−, and fish and wildlife, D−.

[19] The previous people of the Fanno Creek watershed were the Atfalati or Tualaty tribe of the Kalapuya, said to have displaced even earlier inhabitants, the Multnomahs, prior to European contact.

The Oregon Electric, a 49-mile (79 km) system built between 1903 and 1915, ran between downtown Portland and Garden Home in the Fanno Creek watershed, where it split into branches leading to Salem and Forest Grove.

In 2009, a new rail passenger service began along a former Oregon Electric line owned by Portland and Western Railroad in Washington County.

[25] The middle stretch of this run lies close to the lower 8 miles (13 km) of Fanno Creek between Beaverton and Durham.

Historically, Fanno Creek has been polluted by urban and industrial sources, small sewage treatment plants, ineffective septic systems, farming and grazing operations, and illegal dumping.

A ban in 1991 on phosphate detergents, increased connection to municipal sewers, stormwater management, and greater public awareness helped to reduce urban pollution not coming from point sources, and water quality improved.

[29] The watershed watch coordinator for Tualatin Riverkeepers, a volunteer group, was quoted in a July 2008 newspaper article saying that "the biggest impact to Fanno Creek is the impervious area".

Mammals commonly seen include beaver, raccoon, opossum, spotted skunk, Douglas squirrel, and Townsend's chipmunk; black-tail deer and coyotes are more rare.

Fanno Creek supports non-migrating coastal cutthroat trout that spawn in the fast-flowing, gravel-bottomed headwaters and grow to as long as 14 inches (36 cm).

Park officials are considering a variety of options, including re-routing the trails, building a boardwalk over the water, or removing the beaver dams.

[11] A restoration project in Tigard along the main stem has removed invasive plants such as reed canary grass and Himalayan blackberry and replaced them with native species.

[34] A project in Beaverton is replacing turf and degraded habitat along the creek with native shrubs and trees such as Oregon white oak.

The five plants considered most threatening are Japanese knotweed, meadow knapweed, giant hogweed, garlic mustard and purple loosestrife.

The Oregon Department of Agriculture and the city of Tigard are working to eradicate giant hogweed from lower Fanno Creek.

Durham City Park, at the confluence of Fanno Creek and the Tualatin River, consists of 46 acres (19 ha) of heavily wooded floodplain with paved trails, children's play areas, and a picnic shelter.

A narrow bridge, supported by sets of cylindrical piers topped with concrete, crosses a muddy river. A much smaller stream, nearly obscured by vegetation, enters the river near one end of the bridge.
Fanno Creek, nearly hidden by foliage, meets the much larger Tualatin River near a pedestrian bridge.
A modest two-story house sits behind a white wooden fence on a lot with a manicured lawn, blooming bushes, a sidewalk, and trees. The outside of the house, which is painted tan with white trim, looks new, as do the sidewalk and fence.
Fanno Farmhouse was the home of Augustus Fanno, for whom the creek is named. Built in 1859 and restored by the Tualatin Hills Park and Recreation District, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. [ 20 ]
A single train car, painted blue and white, sits on a track between a metal fence and a large blue building.
WES trains use the former Oregon Electric line along lower Fanno Creek between Durham and Beaverton.
Cutthroat trout at the creek's headwaters
A group of plants with broad dark green leaves and vertical clusters of many small cream-colored flowers.
Japanese knotweed is an invasive plant deemed harmful to the watershed.
An asphalt path winds through a flat area of grass, trees, and low bushes.
A completed section of the Fanno Creek Greenway Trail runs through Fanno Creek Park in Beaverton.