About Us
Our mission & our story
To build God’s Kingdom by providing meaningful outdoor experiences as a means of growing believers in their faith, and reaching people for Christ.
Our mission
Meeting God in His creation
Our vision for Paradise Trail Lodge stems from a fundamental conviction that one of the most powerful ways God has revealed Himself is through the world He created. Men and women, boys and girls, are drawn to God when they spend time surrounded by God’s amazing creation (Job 38-41, Psalm 19, Romans 1:20).
Our vision involves the intentional use of the outdoor setting of Paradise Trail Lodge to bring people into fresh encounters with God in order to strengthen them on their journey with Christ.
From hotdog stand to mountain lodge
- The beginning
The lodge began as a hotdog stand along the old Highway 26, then the main thoroughfare through the Mount Hood National Forest.
- 1925
After initial success, the enterprising hotdog vendors chose to build a permanent establishment — the Oregon Trail Tavern.
- The tavern years
For over fifteen years the tavern served as an eatery, lodging (three cabins were also built on the property) and gas station. Hard to imagine, on what is now a quiet property on a dead-end road with very little traffic.
- Ski club days
After the tavern closed for good, the chalet was used by the Oregon City Ski Club for a number of years.
- Today
It became Paradise Trail Lodge and Campground, named for the nearby popular hiking trail, Paradise Park Trail.
