The Smiley Face Forest larch planting by Hampton Lumber, Highway 18 near Grand Ronde, Oregon, USA
The Smiley Face Forest
David Hampton and Dennis Creel of Hampton Lumber · “Smiley Face Hill”, larch trees planted in a Douglas fir forest, 2011 · hillside south of Highway 18 between Grand Ronde and Willamina, Polk County, Oregon
Photo as published on Street Art Utopia; photographer not named
Every autumn a smiley face about 300 feet across turns gold on a forested hillside beside Oregon’s Highway 18. It is made of trees: Hampton Lumber co-owner David Hampton and timberland manager Dennis Creel had larch planted among Douglas firs in 2011 when the slope was replanted after a harvest. The larch needles turn and drop each fall, while the evergreen firs make the eyes and mouth. Fact-checkers confirmed the viral photos are real, and the newest dated view we found was filmed from the air on 7 November 2024.
5 things to know
- Planted in 2011KOIN 6: “The artistically arranged trees were planted on the hillside in 2011 by Hampton Lumber co-owner David Hampton and now-retired timberland manager Dennis Creel, spokesperson Kristin Rasmussen told KOIN 6 News.” KOIN 6 · Fox Weather
- Larch makes the smileOregon State University’s Landscape Plants site: “Larch trees are deciduous conifers and their needles yellow and drop in autumn. The larch make up the body of the face, which is about 300 feet across, and Douglas-fir trees form the eyes and mouth.” OSU Landscape Plants · Full Fact
- Drawn with a ropeBeaver’s Digest: “Planting crews used a rope to plot the circle and triangulate the location for the eyes and mouth—creating a happy face about 300 feet in diameter.” Beaver’s Digest
- Seen from the highwayOSU Landscape Plants: “South of Oregon highway 18 at roughly milepost 25, between Willamina and Grand Ronde in Polk County, trees on Hampton Lumber land form a giant smiley face each fall.” OSU Landscape Plants · Roadside America
- It will not last foreverDavid Hampton to Fox Weather: “So in 40 or 50 years, we’ll probably harvest it, and that’s how it will go.” KOIN 6 reported the company plans to harvest the trees “in another 30 to 50 years.” Fox Weather · KOIN 6
Check-in guide
- 📍
- On Hampton Lumber land on the south side of Highway 18 (Salmon River Highway), at roughly milepost 25 between Willamina and Grand Ronde, Polk County (OSU Landscape Plants, Roadside America).
- 🚗
- Polk County Public Works told KOIN 6 there is a pull-out on the eastbound side of Highway 18, about half a mile east of the Fort Hill Road interchange: “From the ground on public property, that is probably the best vantage point” (KOIN 6). The forest itself is private land.
- 🍂
- Best in October, when the larch turn gold; KOIN 6 was told it should reach peak color by mid-October (KOIN 6).
- 🧭
- The Maps button opens the address Roadside America gives for the viewpoint (24260 Salmon River Hwy, Willamina); we have not checked exact coordinates.
Sightings
- 202111 Nov
Full Fact: the photo is real
- 20218 Dec
Beaver’s Digest report
- 202226 Oct
Fox Weather report
- 202315 Sep
KOIN 6: back for fall
- 20247 Nov
Filmed from the air (KOIN 6)
- 202611 Feb
IFLScience report
Every stamp links to the dated source. The green stamp is aerial footage of the hillside that KOIN 6 says was filmed on Thursday 7 November 2024 by former KOIN 6 meteorologist Natasha Stenbock. Amber stamps are dated reports: a fact check, a student magazine, two TV news pieces and a science site. The photo at the top of this page shows the same orange smiley face in a dark fir forest that these reports describe; it was published on Street Art Utopia without a photographer’s name.
On the record
How Oregon’s iconic smiley face in the trees appears every fall
“We just thought that we ought to show folks that, you know, an open space like this where we harvest can be a happy place.”
David Hampton, co-owner of Hampton Lumber, on why the face was planted.
Photo of smiley face in forest is real
“It’s true. They were deliberately planted by the owners of a lumber forest.”
The UK fact-checker’s verdict on a viral Facebook photo of the face.
A happy plot of trees
“As the face overlooks a highway that runs from the valley to the coast, I imagine many tourists notice it. However, I don’t think many realize who owns the land.”
Kristin Rasmussen of Hampton Lumber, in the Oregon State University student magazine.
The facts
- Made by
- Hampton Lumber co-owner David Hampton and Dennis Creel, then the company’s timberland manager (KOIN 6, Fox Weather, Beaver’s Digest, Full Fact) Checked
- Planted
- 2011, while the hillside was replanted after a harvest (KOIN 6, Fox Weather, OSU Landscape Plants) Checked
- Trees
- Larch form the face; Douglas fir form the eyes and mouth. The larch needles turn yellow-gold and drop in autumn (OSU Landscape Plants, Full Fact, Fox Weather) Checked. OSU names the species as western larch, Larix occidentalis (OSU Landscape Plants) Reported
- Size
- About 300 feet (about 90 m) across (Beaver’s Digest, OSU Landscape Plants, KOIN 6) Checked
- How
- Planting crews used a rope to plot the circle, eyes and mouth, according to Beaver’s Digest (Beaver’s Digest) Reported
- Place
- Hampton Lumber land south of Highway 18, roughly milepost 25, between Grand Ronde and Willamina, Polk County, Oregon (OSU Landscape Plants, Full Fact, Roadside America) Checked
- Future
- The trees are expected to be harvested eventually: “40 or 50 years” (David Hampton, 2022, Fox Weather); “another 30 to 50 years” (Kristin Rasmussen, 2023, KOIN 6) Reported
- Our photo
- Shows an orange-gold larch smiley face with Douglas fir eyes and mouth on a forested hillside, matching the descriptions in every source; published on Street Art Utopia, photographer not named. Where and when it was taken: no source found Unconfirmed
- Status
- Seen November 2024: aerial footage filmed on 7 November 2024, reported by KOIN 6 (KOIN 6 via Yahoo) Checked
Related
- On Street Art Utopia: Couldn’t Keep a Straight Face (8 Photos vol. 2) (10 October 2026), where the photo above appears as work no. 6, and Forest With a Smile.
- How to see it from the road, with the pull-out location. KOIN 6
- Why larch turn gold before they drop their needles. OSU Landscape Plants
All sources (8)
This work
- KOIN 6: “Oregon’s world-famous Smiley Face Hill returns: How to see the happy hillside”, John Ross Ferrara, 15 September 2023. Makers, 2011, 300 feet, viewing pull-out, harvest in 30 to 50 years.
- Fox Weather: “How Oregon’s iconic smiley face in the trees appears every fall”, Steven Yablonski and Heather Brinkmann, 26 October 2022. Makers, 2011, Highway 18, interview with David Hampton.
- Full Fact: “Photo of smiley face in forest is real”, Tom Norton, 11 November 2021. Fact check of the viral photo; location and makers.
- Beaver’s Digest: “A happy plot of trees”, Teresita Guzman Nader, 8 December 2021. Rope layout, 300 feet, Kristin Rasmussen quotes.
- Oregon State University Landscape Plants: “Larch trees carefully planted in a Doug-fir forest in Oregon”, undated. Milepost 25, Polk County, species, 300 feet.
- IFLScience: “Who Is Behind The Smiling Forest Of Oregon?”, James Felton, 11 February 2026. Makers, 2011, 300 feet.
- Roadside America: “Smiley Face Hill”, undated listing with a visitor tip of 20 January 2025. Highway 18 between mileposts 25 and 26; address used for the Maps button.
Dated footage
- KOIN 6 via Yahoo: “VIDEO: Fall smiley face returns to Oregon hillside”, Josh Cozart, published 8 November 2024 (UTC). Aerial view filmed on Thursday 7 November 2024.
Artwork File · Last checked 10 October 2026 · Certainty labels follow How We Verify Art · All Artwork Files