Oregon Route 47
Route description
Route description
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[thumb\|left\|Start of Oregon Route 47 in Clatskanie, Oregon](/wiki/File:Start_of_Oregon_Route_47_in_Clatskanie%2C_Oregon..JPG "Start of Oregon Route 47 in Clatskanie, Oregon..JPG")
Oregon Route 47 begins (at its southern terminus) at a junction with [Oregon Route 99W](/wiki/Oregon_Route_99W "Oregon Route 99W") between the cities of McMinnville and [Lafayette](/wiki/Lafayette%2C_Oregon "Lafayette, Oregon").<http://egov.oregon.gov/ODOT/TD/TDATA/rics/docs/NumRouteMap_enl.pdf> \|Portland Area Enlargement of map of State of Oregon Highway system\-2006 This stretch is known as the **Tualatin Valley Highway**. It continues north along the western edge of the Willamette Valley, hugging the [Coast Range](/wiki/Oregon_Coast_Range "Oregon Coast Range"). It passes through parts of Oregon's wine country (and some prime agricultural land), and through small towns such as [Carlton](/wiki/Carlton%2C_Oregon "Carlton, Oregon"), [Yamhill](/wiki/Yamhill%2C_Oregon "Yamhill, Oregon"), and [Gaston](/wiki/Gaston%2C_Oregon "Gaston, Oregon"). The first large city encountered is [Forest Grove](/wiki/Forest_Grove%2C_Oregon "Forest Grove, Oregon"). A bypass around the east side of town avoids the downtown area.

In Forest Grove, OR 47 intersects [Oregon Route 8](/wiki/Oregon_Route_8 "Oregon Route 8"), and the Tualatin Valley Highway leaves Oregon Route 47, and continues east towards [Hillsboro](/wiki/Hillsboro%2C_Oregon "Hillsboro, Oregon") and [Beaverton](/wiki/Beaverton%2C_Oregon "Beaverton, Oregon") on Oregon Route 8\. North of the intersection, OR 47 is known as the **Nehalem Highway**. It continues north, passing through the town of [Banks](/wiki/Banks%2C_Oregon "Banks, Oregon"). North of Banks, OR 47 shares an alignment for about 4 miles (6 km) with [U.S. Route 26](/wiki/U.S._Route_26_%28Oregon%29 "U.S. Route 26 (Oregon)") over the **[Sunset Highway](/wiki/Sunset_Highway_%28Oregon%29 "Sunset Highway (Oregon)")**, which is—a bit confusingly—[Highway 47](/wiki/State_highways_in_Oregon "State highways in Oregon"). North of [Manning](/wiki/Manning%2C_Oregon "Manning, Oregon"), OR 47 and US 26 part ways. OR 47 continues north, following the North Fork of [Dairy Creek](/wiki/Dairy_Creek_%28Oregon%29 "Dairy Creek (Oregon)") to its source and passing [L.L. "Stub" Stewart Memorial State Park](/wiki/L.L._%22Stub%22_Stewart_Memorial_State_Park "L.L. ")[Official State Parks Fact Sheet](https://web.archive.org/web/20070930203528/http://www.oregonstateparks.org/images/pdf/stub-stewart-fact-sheet.pdf) and shortly thereafter reaching the summit called "Tophill" where the highway departs the Willamette River drainage and enters the Nehalem drainage. From Tophill, the highway quickly winds down to a tributary of the Nehalem River and finds the [Nehalem River](/wiki/Nehalem_River "Nehalem River") at the extinct community of Treharne.
[thumb\|right\|Apiary Junction](/wiki/Image:Apiaryjunction.jpg "Apiaryjunction.jpg")
[thumb\|47 in Banks](/wiki/File:Oregon_Route_47_in_Banks.JPG "Oregon Route 47 in Banks.JPG")
Though in the mountainous [Northern Oregon Coast Range](/wiki/Northern_Oregon_Coast_Range "Northern Oregon Coast Range"), the **Nehalem Highway** itself is just winding, as it follows the banks of the Nehalem River all the way to Jewell,[The Nehalem River Highway](http://home.comcast.net/~jbutts14/mist.html), Jeffrey Butts passing through [Vernonia](/wiki/Vernonia%2C_Oregon "Vernonia, Oregon")[http://egov.oregon.gov/ODOT/TD/TDATA/rics/docs/NumRouteMap.pdf\|](http://egov.oregon.gov/ODOT/TD/TDATA/rics/docs/NumRouteMap.pdf|) State of Oregon Highway System Route Map 2006 and [Pittsburg](/wiki/Pittsburg%2C_Oregon "Pittsburg, Oregon"). However, Pittsburg is little more than a road junction where the Scappoose\-Vernonia Road breaks off and heads up the East Fork of the Nehalem River for [Scappoose, Oregon](/wiki/Scappoose%2C_Oregon "Scappoose, Oregon"). A few miles further north, Route 47 reaches the Apiary junction with destinations for Apiary and Rainier. The Apiary road is popular with truckers as it does not have the restrictive length limitations which are applied to OR 47 North of Mist or Oregon Route 202 west of Jewell because of numerous short turns.

After the town of [Mist](/wiki/Mist%2C_Oregon "Mist, Oregon"), the Nehalem Highway continues west towards [Astoria](/wiki/Astoria%2C_Oregon "Astoria, Oregon") as [Oregon Route 202](/wiki/Oregon_Route_202 "Oregon Route 202"); OR 47 continues north for  as the **Mist\-Clatskanie Highway**. This stretch of OR 47 is rather mountainous, with many sharp turns and steep grades. Eventually, OR 47 descends out of the mountains into the Columbia River basin, and ends in the city of [Clatskanie](/wiki/Clatskanie%2C_Oregon "Clatskanie, Oregon") at an intersection with [U.S. Route 30](/wiki/U.S._Route_30_%28Oregon%29 "U.S. Route 30 (Oregon)").


Why is there a bypass around Forest Grove?