God's Thumb Hike Information

Where is the God’s Thumb Trailhead?

There has been confusion over the years regarding the correct trailhead. This website was created in partnership with The City of Lincoln City to provide education and help potential hikers/tourists avoid accidentally trespassing onto private property.

Short Answer:

Gods Thumb is accessible from The Knoll
Use official The Knoll trailhead parking
There is no trailhead at the end of Logan Road
There is no official US Forestry Service maintained trail to Gods Thumb
The final climb is steep, dangerous, and requires proper hiking gear

What is the God’s Thumb?

The basalt formation north of Roads Ends in the Cascade Head Scenic Research Area (part of the Siuslaw National Forest) has no official designation or name, the formation is commonly referred to as “God’s Thumb”, or “The Thumb” by local residents, visitors, and hikers. As recommended in the CHSRA Trails & Access Proposal, we will refer to the basalt formation as The Thumb going forward. The proposal has recommended a coordination team be funding some time in the future to formally engage and adopt the name The Thumb across social media, travel, and printed materials. When this occurs, we will formally transition the name here as well.

What Exactly is The Thumb hike?

The Thumb hike is a wonderful experience that takes you through the forest to a basalt formation. The Thumb does not have a formally maintained trailhead, and should be approached from The Knoll, which is an Open Space hike maintained by the City of Lincoln City. Multiple websites have provided a very detailed description of the hike, and we strongly recommend following one of their write ups (see More Information below)

The “user made” (forestry service’s terminology) trail for The Thumb begins from The Knoll, an open space accessible via a trail maintained by the City of Lincoln City. The Knoll’s official trailhead parking is found on NE Devil’s Lake Blvd.

Hebo Ranger District has posted signage that the “User Made” trail is not to code, is not a USFS maintained trail, and should be utilized “at your own risk”. Please be aware of this prior to following the trail.

Start point is at NE Devil’s Lake Blvd Trailhead
End point is at The High Meadow
4.8 miles total distance
Moderate difficulty
Can be visited all year long
Can be extremely muddy and/or slippery after it has rained
Can be crowded on weekends

How to Get To The Thumb:

The Thumb’s “user made” trail is accessible from The Knoll
- Use official The Knoll trailhead parking
- Start your hike by following the signs to The Knoll
- Follow “user made” trail from The Knoll to the High Meadow
- The final path to the top of The Thumb is narrow and dangerous
- Proceed with Extreme Caution to the top of The Thumb!
- People have been seriously hurt while attempting the final part of the hike.
- This trail crossed through private property, please be respectful of this

The information provided here is to help educate and direct people to utilize the correct trail to “The Knoll” that connects to a “user made” trail from The Knoll to the basalt formation (aka The Thumb).

Is There Also a Trailhead at the End of Logan Road?

No. In the past, there was a shorter user made path located at the end of Logan Road. That path is located on private property and based on the CHSRA Trails & Access Proposal recommendations should not be utilized since it is steep, slippery, and not maintained. This website was created in an attempt to help educate and direct visitors to the recommended trailhead at the end of NE Devil’s Lake Blvd.

What is the Cascade Head Scenic Research Area ?

The Cascade Head Scenic-Research Area was established when President Ford signed Public Law 93-535 on December 22, 1974. This is the first Scenic-Research Area designated in the United States. It is located within the Hebo Ranger District, Siuslaw National Forest, in the State of Oregon and includes about 5 miles of the Pacific Ocean shoreline. The Area contains 9,670 acres of land on the central Oregon coast. Of these, 5,764 acres are in Tillamook County and 3,906 acres acre in Lincoln County. There are 5,045 acres (53%) In private ownership with the balance in Federal (41.4%), State (5.4%), or County (0.2%) ownership.

The general management objectives for the Cascade Head Scenic~Research Area as stated in the Law are “… to provide present and future generations with the use and enjoyment of certain ocean headlands, rivers, streams, estuaries, and forested areas, to insure the protection and encourage the study of significant areas for research and scientific purposes, and to promote a more sensitive relationship between man and his adjacent environment …”

For more information, please refer to the following documents and links:

When is Best Time to Go?

Multiple hiking websites recommend going early in the day to have a better chance at getting parking at the cul-de-saq, as well as to avoid hiking during the hotter afternoon temperatures. Also, depending on the time of the year, the trail can be very muddy, contain fallen branches, etc. It is best to go prepared appropriately for this type of hike.

Where Can I Get More Information?

The following is a small selection of web sites with additional information about The Knoll and The Thumb. Efforts have been made to update the various hiking sites and map references to correctly document the approved trailhead. We would recommend reading one or more of these before attempting the hike for the first time.

Enjoy your visit to our town!

This website has been created in partnership with City of Lincoln City and the Road’s End neighborhood residents

God’s Thumb Hike Information