i will be in Portland for a day next week. is there anything i should see or do that is unique to that city?
Drive to McMinnville and see the Spruce Goose The Spruce Goose - Evergreen Museum or drive to Hood River and see a unique collection of antique cars and aeroplanes Home - Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum (waaamuseum.org)
I will be out of town from Tuesday on, or I would offer to take you to lunch or something. We have great beer, great restaurants, other than that it really depends on what you are interested in. The Evergreen Air and Space Museum is excellent, if a bit tarnished these days, and is in the middle of fantastic, beautiful wine country. If you go down there, I suggest spending the night at the Allison Inn in Newberg. If you like books, Powell's Books is a bit of a landmark and an amazing store-- I can see it from my office window! The Brothers Collection is an amazing private car collection, but probably not open-- generally only open on weekends to clubs or organizations who have pre-arranged. The Portland Japanese Garden is spectacular, especially this time of year and with the weather we are supposed to have next week. So those are a few things-- what do you like to do?
There might be some good protests coming up. They sometimes make the national news. What kind of car are you in? The ridge at Mt St Helens can be a good drive.
PM me if you’re interested in shooting’ some guns at a the range (Tri County Gun Club; I got you covered on eyes and ears, and I might have a few guns ) or wine tasting. Wednesday’s lightest call days for me (aka ideal).
I never have understood why people wade into regional forums of areas they don't live in just to dump on the people who do live there. What a ugly, classless, and divisive thing to do.
i saw the spruce goose when it was still in Long Beach, but may take the wife to see it. good one. and i like the idea of the museum - will see if i can get there as well. thx
i am only there on for half a day - we are visiting some of my wife's family, staying there, and then driving to walla walla the next morning. i think i may have time for the two museums mentioned above, and the wife wants to see the rose and japanese gardens, but probably not the time to newberg. but thanks for these recommendations.
thanks for the offer ! if it were me alone, that would be an excellent idea ! but i dont think the wife will go for that.
You can definitely chill for a few hours at The Japanese Garden. https://japanesegarden.org/ Multnomah Falls 45 minutes away is a great second stop. While in the area, go by Vista House. https://www.visitmultnomahfalls.com/ https://vistahouse.com/ These two will give you two a glimpse of the beauty of the PNW. Try to book dinner at Ava Gene. Or, be like the locals and stand in line at 445 to get into Ken’s Artisan Pizza that opens at 530 (no rez). Top 10 pizza in the US. Ava was both a Beard winner and a Bon Appetite Top 10. If you’re craving a steak, make a reservation at RingSide Steakhouse. OG joint that’s been around since the 40s and beats most chain fancy steakhouses. Ask them not to salt the steaks as I feel they’re a little heavy handed; add your own. The onion ring appetizer is a must. Street parking for Ava and Ken’s. Valet at ringside. https://www.avagenes.com/ https://kensartisan.com/pizza https://www.ringsidesteakhouse.com/ Weather should be great next week! Enjoy your visit!
The Evergreen Museum in McMinnville will take you most of a day. It's 45 minutes each way from Portland (in the wrong direction from Walla Walla), and then the museum itself is not small. The WAAM museum in Hood River is on your way, Hood River is a beautiful town with lots of nice restaurants, I would suggest stopping there. On your way to Hood River, you might take the old highway for a bit and stop at Crown Point: https://stateparks.oregon.gov/index.cfm?do=park.profile&parkId=108 Also, there is a great milkshake place in Cascade Locks, depending on when you are passing through, and an excellent coffee/pastry place in The Dalles (The Riv), although your timing might not work for that. Depending on your timing, you might consider going straight to Hood River and staying at the Columbia Gorge hotel: https://www.columbiagorgehotel.com/ The Hood River Hotel is also fine, although not quite as cool as the Columbia Gorge Hotel. Skamania Lodge, on the Washington side, is very nice as well.
Japanese Garden is fantastic, and should be really beautiful this time of year, so at a minimum do that.
If you're driving to Walla Walla I recommend staying on the highway 30 through the Columbia gorge to see the waterfalls rather than 84 all the way. This includes Multnomah falls and others that you can stop at and walk to in a few minutes. Parking at the falls can be tough, but it may be ok midweek.. It is slower than 84 but well worth the time it adds.
It will be challenging - to say the least - to take-in both the Japanese Gardens and Evergreen Museum in half a day. If parks are your thing, I'd suggest skipping Evergreen and visiting the Halprin Sequence in Downtown Portland. The Sequence is one of the most influential works of Landscape Architecture in the US, designed by one of the world's foremost Landscape Architects. Plan your visit around the Noon hour, grab a quick bite at the Food Cart Pod at SW 4th Ave and College St., and then it's just a quick jaunt around the corner to the Sequence's "start" at The Source Fountain. A quick 1/2 block walk south along the Sequence's pedestrian pathway from The Source takes you to the spectacular Lovejoy Fountain where you can relax in the shade with your lunch before continuing on to Pettygrove Park and the Sequence's terminus at Keller Fountain. https://www.halprinconservancy.org/history https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Halprin For your trip to Two Wallas, I second the suggestion to travel on as much of Scenic Highway US 30 as possible; the first planned scenic highway in the US. The Columbia River Gorge is spectacular, but it's difficult to get a sense of the grandeur from water's edge along I-84. Taking in the westward view from Vista House at Crown Point, it's easy to imagine what those traveling the Oregon Trail felt when they were at this point in their journey. The only downside to the drive is that it will make you wish you were in your F-Car. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historic_Columbia_River_Highway Whatever you end-up doing, enjoy!
i forgot to thank you guys ! got to portland. picked up the car. and went to an authentic local coffee place they had their own roast coffee. they also had their own beer. a good combo. then we picked up our family member and went to the japanese garden - very nice, especially since we had just finished watching Shogun. the next day we woke up early and headed out along the columbia river valley and stopped at the multnomah falls - wow! very cool. then we continued our drive to walla walla, and saw some incredible scenery. it was like driving through a massive early american master painting like you see in the smithsonian, it was just spectacular and awesome (and i dont use that word often). you guys have an incredibly beautiful state. thanks for the tips.
