Oregon travel

[PoorOldCountryBoy]

Agree with RB as to Hillsboro. I'd look to stay on the East side. Otherwise you will be in 1-2 hours of traffic to get out to Hood River. Maybe even stay across the river from Hood River in Stevenson/Cascade Locks if looking for cheaper accomodations.

Your itinerary looks much better. Skinny down a bit. I don't know a lot about the south coast. Other than our family did the jet boats on the Rouge river. That was fun. The highway is closed from landslides this winter. Detour is in place but might be some slow going. Not a lot of alternative routes there. Hard to say if that will be repaired by August. Keep an eye on Tripcheck.org. https://tripcheck.com/Pages/Road-Conditions

On your way down to Crater Lake you have several options to go over the Cascades. You probably want to go over the Willamette Pass through Eugene. Very scenic drive. You got very lucky to get a room at the Lodge at Crater Lake in high season. I have tried a couple times and not been able to get in. Congratulations

I don't know the highways & roads in Southern Ore over to the coast.Be aware there are some goat trails (roads) that go over the Coast range. For a few years families would follow Google maps and get up on some bad roads & get stuck. As in not enough room to turn around and go back. Just vet your roads well.

Welcome to Oregon!

edit: looks like Hwy 101 is open to one lane right now.

Thanks for both of your detailed comments - Assuming that the 101 will be fully Open by September but yes we will check the ODOT website etc. for closings. Looked at the jetboat tours - they look very interesting if the temperatures are high enough. We're likely to pick a few activities along the coast only due to the compressed time schedule, lots of good ideas from the discussion here.

 

[mh]

Thanks to everyone for their advice! I find the people on this site are so helpful for insider recommendations for travel. You're the best!


We are going at the end of August and have set the following itinerary:
1. Fly into Portland for 1 night near the airport.
2. A night at the Crater Lake Lodge (woohoo! did not think it would be available!)
3. A night in Brookings on the coast
4. A night in Newport further up the coast
5. Drive up through Dundee/wine country and spend the rest of the week in Hillsboro with the goal of using that as a hub to see the Columbia river valley east and west, Mt Hood, etc.


The Crater Lake Lodge stay drove the timing of everything else (which will include Labor Day weekend), so that made the hotels pretty tricky. Fortunately I was able to use accumulated points for most of the nights and splurge on the Crater Lake Lodge. All in all it will be a pretty inexpensive vacation for the three of us.


Yes, it's a lot of driving but it is nothing for us to put on 2000-3000 miles on our vacations, so this looks like it will be somewhere around 1000 miles or so - a relatively local trip for us.

If you want interesting scenic beaches I would consider Brandon beach maybe instead of brookings. It’s an hour and a half ish north of brookings .

 

[PoorOldCountryBoy]

I agree with other posters, Hillsboro is a long way from the gorge and Mount Hood. Depending on traffic you'll waste 30-60 minutes driving through Portland before you can venture into the gorge or up to Mount Hood. I would stay somewhere on the east side of Portland, if possible.

Are you heading down I-5 to Crater lake, or south from Hood River?

If you have time, you could stop at the Oregon Caves near Cave Junction on your way from Crater Lake to Brookings.

Maybe wasted miles for you veterans, but for us newbie Oregon visitors, a drive thru anywhere is not "wasted" time and we tend to make great discoveries in everyday locations. There's serendipitous tourist gold in every square mile of most locations!

Well likely be going on I-5 to Crater lake and going up one of the mountain passes, preferably the most scenic. Either Rt 58 via Eugene or Rt 138 via Roseburg seem realistic.

 

[braumeister]

Since you're most likely spending a night in Newport, one of my favorite towns on the coast, there are two lighthouses that are worth a visit.

Yaquina Bay Lighthouse is right in town and dates to 1871.

Yaquina Head Lighthouse is just north of Newport and dates to 1872 (it replaced the 1871 lighthouse).

You should also not leave the town without having a bowl of clam chowder at Mo's on the bayfront.

 

[mountainsoft]

Maybe wasted miles for you veterans, but for us newbie Oregon visitors, a drive thru anywhere is not "wasted" time and we tend to make great discoveries in everyday locations. There's serendipitous tourist gold in every square mile of most locations!

No, I didn't mean there weren't interesting things to see along the way. There's certainly plenty to do around Portland. Visit the zoo, walk around Hoyt arboretum, the Japanese garden, or other areas in Washington park. Hike the 4T trail, drive up to Council Crest, visit the Pittock Mansion. Walk along the waterfront in downtown Portland, have brunch at the Portland City Grill, visit the chinese garden, take a tour with Oregon Helicopters. See my video at Mar 17, 2019 - Saint Patrick's Day in Downtown Portland. Visit OMSI, ride the max train, ride the trolley, take the tram up to OHSU and/or back, etc.

I just understood you were making Hillsboro your "hub" to venture out to see other activities for several days. One drive through the city is interesting and fun. If you have to make that same drive through the city for several days to get to the sights that interest you I'm guessing you would tire of the grid-lock. That's time you could be seeing the sights instead of sitting in traffic. Just something to consider.

 

[mountainsoft]

Well likely be going on I-5 to Crater lake and going up one of the mountain passes, preferably the most scenic. Either Rt 58 via Eugene or Rt 138 via Roseburg seem realistic.

If you take 58 be sure to stop for a soak at Mccredie Hot Springs (be prepared for nude soakers), and stop to see Salt Creek Falls. Crescent Lake is also worth a stop.

 

[Helen]

I agree that Hillsboro would not be a good location to stay if you want access to the gorge. I would consider staying around the Lloyd Center in Portland. You would be right by I-84 and right by the Max train if you wanted to go into Portland. Otherwise Hood River would be a good option if you don't want to be in a larger city. You would be on the eastern edge of the gorge and could head west to get to the beautiful waterfalls.

Are you hikers? The Multnomah Falls to Wahkeena hike is open. There was a huge fire that damaged a lot of the gorge on the Oregon side. Falls Creek Falls is a beautiful hike on the Washington side.

 

[RunningBum]

I forgot about that fire. What a tragedy.

 

[Brat]

Staying at either of the hotels near the Lloyd Center (Doubletree or Residence Inn) not only gives you easy access to the freeway but also near a MAX stop.

Transit is the best way to see many of the Portland sites mentioned because parking is a challenge. Honored Citizen (65 or over) all day pass on the transit system (MAX light rail, bus, streetcars, but not the tram to OHSU - www.gobytram/hours-fare) is only $2.50. We have a nice zoo but doesn't every major city? There are two MAX stops where you can take a bus to the Japanise Garden which is also very close to our rose test garden. If it is a sunny day take a MAX or streetcar to the base of the OHSU tram and ride it up and back - great viewpoint to see snowcapped mountains at the top.

We do have a Hop-on-Hop-off tourist bus. If you have only one day to see Portland that would be an excellent choice. https://www.graylineofportland.net/portland-hop-on-hop-off-tours/

I live at the NW corner of SW Vista and Park Place. Wave as you go by.

 

[Independent]

I'm interested in all this. Since I'm not traveling with kids, I can avoid the June-August crowds, if that is a thing. Do the crowds follow the school schedule?

Crater Lake has a "short season". How short?

 

[Bir48die]

I'm interested in all this. Since I'm not traveling with kids, I can avoid the June-August crowds, if that is a thing. Do the crowds follow the school schedule?

Crater Lake has a "short season". How short?

Yes on the crowd timing. Camping is busy the few weeks after Labor Day but since you're not camping hotels should be plentiful. Weather should be awesome.

Agree that Bandon (not Brandon) is a nice town versus Brookings. Very small and intimate.

You have a decent drive if heading to Crater Lake the day after you fly in. Not sure when it shuts down but usually early Fall due to snow.

Agree that Hillsboro should not be a hub. Traffic going east is horrendous most of the day headed through the city. Locate on the east side of the river for Gorge travel.

Wine tasting is a must. Sure Dundee is great but if you're going there do it on a weekday. Weekend traffic going through town is awful. Some are drop in and some are appointment only. If you want suggestions just PM some of us and you'll get decent recommendations.

Enjoy

 

[Scrapr]

Wine tasting is a must. Sure Dundee is great but if you're going there do it on a weekday. Weekend traffic going through town is awful. Some are drop in and some are appointment only. If you want suggestions just PM some of us and you'll get decent recommendations.

Enjoy

Have you been since the bypass was built? Did that help traffic in Dundee? I've been on the bypass once or twice. But I don't think I've been through town. We like the wineries up in the hills anyway and not so much on the main street. So we will take the back way in out of Newberg. Over the years we have done a lot of work in that area. Mrs Scrapr & I stayed at a B&B a few years ago and that provided easy access to lots & lots of tasting rooms

 

[ziggy29]

I'm interested in all this. Since I'm not traveling with kids, I can avoid the June-August crowds, if that is a thing. Do the crowds follow the school schedule?

I live on the north coast. Listening to the long-time locals (we moved here last July), the "off season" apparently isn't as off as it used to be. That said, yes, the summer months are the busiest out here -- and we just finished Spring Break which was quite hectic as well (another week for those not beholden to school schedules to avoid tourism).

After Labor Day there is usually still about six weeks of good weather and considerably less crowds. At least on the coast, if you want weather that is likely pretty good but with less crowds, late September and early October are pretty good times -- the rainy season really doesn't start kicking in until late October or November. It's still pretty touristy then, but not as much. And many places will start lowering lodging rates after Labor Day (at least mid-week) but probably won't hit deeper discounted "low season" rates until November.

 

[Independent]

Thanks, that helps. Of course, it always gets complicated. I live in Iowa --- May and September are definitely our best weather months.

 

[ziggy29]

Thanks, that helps. Of course, it always gets complicated. I live in Iowa --- May and September are definitely our best weather months.

May can sometimes be an extension of the rainy season out here. September is nearly always lovely, as is at least the first half of October. You might be able to find some decent deals *midweek* in late September or early October.

 

[Chuckanut]

Hop across the border and see Mt. Saint Helens in WA state. It’s not often one gets to see a mountain with its side blown out.