Last August we visited the peninsula out on the Columbia Slough across from the Portland International Raceway. In the heat and sun of the summer, the peninsula, which the people who live there refer to as "Tweaker Island," was a maze of camps, connected by paths and protected by thick blackberry bushes.

Living in camps on a piece of land that juts out into the slough was challenging but also sometimes beautiful in the summer -- a group of older homeless men and women seemed to look out for each other, keeping each other fed and safe. Great blue herons and great egrets swooped over water. We watched the sun set from lawn chairs and heard the sounds of the racetrack in the distance.

But in the winter, Tweaker Island is a much harsher place. This Thursday was the seventh day in a row of temperatures around freezing and below freezing at night, and Thursday set a new record low of 17 degrees. Highs were around freezing. It's expected to snow in Portland on Saturday and the cold weather may last even longer.

The campers, who are technically trespassing on land belonging to Arclin Surfaces LLC, struggle to stay warm as the temperature dips below freezing. On Monday, an apparently homeless man died of hypothermia while sleeping outside on East Burnside in the cold weather. Staying warm itself has become a life and death issue.

There are fewer campers now than there were in the summer, and as the weather gets colder, it becomes harder and harder to find supplies. Some of the inhabitants of the peninsula are in their 50s and older and the cold makes their joints ache so they have a harder time climbing up the embankment and out of the woods. They battle rats and nutria who chew holes in their tents, and they worry about police or the city kicking them out.

In August, Mike Liefeld Bureau of Development Services enforcement program manager, told us there were questions about who was legally responsible for the peninsula but they had cited a violation for illegal camping. On Friday, he told us over email that it was determined Portland Parks and Recreation is responsible.

"I do know that it is not Portland Parks & Recreation property but that the bureau leases that land from a private landowner," Mark Ross, spokesperson for Portland Parks and Recreation said over email.

"Actions regarding asking people to leave are TBD right now until I find out more from my staff," he added.

"It is heartbreaking to all of us with the City that people are living outdoors," he continued. "And please know that we realize enforcement (moving people out of a park) is most assuredly not a long-term solution to the problem of homelessness."

Instead, he said, the city tries to connect people with services to assist them.

"Our staff, including Portland Park Rangers, and Parks Commissioner Amanda Fritz, recognize that it is not a crime to simply be homeless; nor does enforcement alone solve the complex issues of homelessness and related problems," Ross said. "Police agree as well."

But, he added, "If people do not wish to accept such services, our options are limited."

Click through the pictures in the gallery above to see what winter means for Tweaker Island.

-- Lizzy Acker

503-221-8052

lacker@oregonian.com, @lizzzyacker