Oregon
– July/August, 2016
Having heard so
much about this beautiful state I decided to spend a few weeks seeing it for
myself. Orange
County to Portland was a quick 2 hour flight, MAX tram
into the city and a nice walk up to my airbnb in the pearl district on Northrup Street. Was able to leave my luggage and set out to
see Portland.
First stop, Café
Haydn for a delicious Schaffen Berger Torte and then wandered the city, i.e.
walked across the steel bridge, along the Willamette River,
stopped by the Powell Bookstore and wandered down 23rd Street. Dinner at Ned Ludd on MLK Drive was very nice. Cozy little restaurant with lots of
atmosphere, my squid/potato dish was spicy and delicious. Weather pretty warm, i.e. about 95 degrees…
Took a walk down 21st Street
and found Sterling Coffee Roasters where I had a flaky peach hand pie and
strong coffee. Walked to the waterfront
park, across the Tillikum pedestrian bridge to the Division area filled with little
boutique shops, restaurants, etc.
Stopped at Bakery t for a cheese croissant sandwich and molasses cookie
and took the bus back to town. Visited
the Portland Art Museum which had a great exposition
on Native American fashions designed by Navajo, Hopi, etc. designers. Also visited the Native American art
permanent collection which was excellent as well.
Listened to the
concert in the park at 6 p.m. and then dinner at Nomad PDX on Broadway. Chef was really nice and the tasting menu was
very ecletic. Some of the dishes were a
bit “out there” for me but I enjoyed the experience very much.
In the morning I
walked to Washington
Park and will do it
justice when I return in August. Almond
croissant at Sterling and then took the bus to
pick up my little Ford Fiesta at Avis Car Rentals on Lincoln.
Headed out 84E, stopping in Troutdale to have a look, on to the Women’s
Forum for a view of the Columbia Valley, House at Crown Vista Point for another nice
view and parked near Wahkeena
Falls. Walked first to Multnomab
Falls, cascading in a long drop of 620
feet and back up to Wahkeena Falls before driving on to Cascade locks where I
crossed the Bridge of the Gods to the Washington
side and back just to drive over the bridge!!!
Stopped in Hood
River to have a look but
plan to return the next day to spend more time there. Checked in a Timberline Lodge, a wonderful
lodge near Mt. Hood.
Had a nice little room where I stayed two nights. Decided to have dinner in Welches nearby at
Rendez vous. Really enjoyed sitting
outside on the patio and dining on a grilled salmon salad followed by a
delicious chocolate tart. A great start
to my trip.
Enormous cinnamon
donut for breakfast at Huckleberry Inn in the government camp before setting my
GPS to Washington and heading to The Dalles where I crossed over the bridge into Washington and drove along the Columbia
River which was beautiful.
Spent a couple hours in the outstanding Maryhill Museum,
built by Sam Hill as well as all the paved roads along the river. Great Native American arts exhibit and some
furniture from Romania
donated by Alma Speckles. Also a nice
selection of Rodin prints. My very
favorite was the theatre de la mode which was “wire dolls” wearing designer
fashions on stage which reminded me of the Calder circus at the Whitney Museum in NYC.
Crossed back into Oregon and stopped in Hood River
for lunch at Doppia, i.e. ½ tuna sandwich/peanut butter cookie before walking
down to the river where people were flying enormous kites. Back to Timberland and watched a video about
the building of the lodge by the WPA.
Dinner at the lodge’s Cascade Restaurant, i.e. proveta cheese heated in
a skillet with heirloom tomatoes served with grilled bread and a yummy
chocolate pot of cream with berries for dessert.
In the morning, I
walked a bit of the Pacific Crest Trail which comes into Mt. Hood
and then had breakfast on the patio overlooking the mountain. People were headed up to the ski slopes on
the lift where there is snow on Mt. hood.
Drove to Bend
where I met up with a very dear friend who works and designs glass pieces for
the Red Chair Gallery in town. Had
lunch at Zydeco, i.e. spicy shrimp with grits cakes and flourless chocolate
cake. Wandered the town and into Drake
park along the river before dining at Drake, i.e. grilled kale salad with crisp
quinoa, apples, roasted sweet potatoes and blue cheese, finishing with a very
delicious French toast crème brulee later that evening. Stayed at a very nice airbnb nearby just a
few minutes from the center.
Took a nice walk
around the lake in the morning and then had a delicious chocolate croissant at Sparrow
bakery, an adorable little café. Spent a
couple hours in the wonderful High
Desert Museum,
visiting the Native American arts exhibits, watching a video about the Native
American Indians and wandering around the Henry Miller farm outside. Even saw some sea otters!! Drove to Sisters, a sweet little town nearby
and then on through the McKenzie pass scenic drive from highway 126 to highway
242 through the Willamette national
forest. Stopped to view the lava fields
and the Dee Wright observatory, a tower-like lava structure constructed in the
early 1930’s – veryyy interesting.
On my way back to
Bend I stopped at the Koosah and Sabalie falls for a short walk to visit
each. Dinner at Ariana on Galvaston was
very nice, i.e. red and yellow beets salad with phyllo “sachet” filled with
goat cheese, hot smoked salmon tartar and chocolate soufflé cake. I sat outside on the patio which was very
pleasant…
The next morning I
stopped at Sparrow for an almond croissant before driving through Eugene to Cottage
Grove where I visited some covered bridges. Drove through Goodpasture bridge coming into Cottage Grove and then
visited Currin bridge, Dorena bridge, Stewart bridge and Mosby creek bridge.
Drove into Cottage Grove, parked and
walked to the tiny Centennial bridge, the Wwing bridge and finally to Chamber
bridge where trains used to pass through.
Really fantastic to see all those bridges. Stopped for a few minutes in Eugene
near the marketplace and will return later when I get to Florence.
Dinner later that evening at 5 Fusion was really good. Chef is French and combines Asian and French
ideas for delicious dishes. I had duck
steamed buns, scallops with chimichurri and bacon, tuna poke salad with tiny
tortilla chips, seawood, edamme, etc. and 3 crème brulees for dessert.
Drove to Old Mill
area in the morning for a nice walk along the river, chocolate croissant at Sparrow
and then drove to the Lava
River Cave. I rented a lantern to walk the 90 minute,
mile long lava tube which was fascinating and very dark! To Paulina and East lakes which were once
craters and took a path to the obsidian fields and stopped by the lake for a
cookie from Sparrow and an orange for lunch.
Drove through Crater
Lake to Fort Klamath
where I stayed at the fabulous Crater
Lake b&b
where I had a nice big room and Janet, the owner, was delightful! Drove to El Rodeo for a Mexican dinner, i.e.
chicken soft taco and chile relleno.
Place was jumping and food was nice.
Took a nice walk
in the morning and Janet fixed a delicious breakfast, especially the
coffeecake. Drove into Crater
Lake, first stopping at Crater Lake Lodge to book a ticket for the
boat the following day. Drove the rim
route, i.e. 3.3 miles, starting on the west side, i.e. stopping to see the
phantom ship overlook, the pumice castle, etc.
Drove to the pinnacles overlook, i.e. unearthly spirals of eroded ash
which resemble the peaks of fairy tale castles.
Stopped for lunch at the Crater Lake Lodge and had a table overlooking
the lake. Delicious spinach salad with
poppy seed dressing, almonds, feta and strawberries and a chocolate torte for
dessert. Walked the discovery trail and
visited the visitor’s center for more information on the formation of crater
lake. Returned to Fort Klamath
for a couple hours and then back to Crater Lake Lodge for dinner, i.e. polenta
cakes topped with sautéed mushrooms and crème brulee.
Up early and had
some fruit before taking a chocolate scone and heading to the Cheetwood trail
to catch the boat tour. An easy mile
walk downhill which wasn’t so easy going back up. The boat held about 16 people which was
perfect and it was a lovely day to enjoy the lake from below and see how clear
the water is. Spent 3 hours on Wizard Island,
walking up to the summit and down into the caldera – really incredible. Boat trip continued for another hour with our
guide explaining all about the crater – a wonderful trip. Very long hike up to the top and then I
stopped at Crater Lake Lodge for a spinach salad which had tasted so good
yesterday. Got some gas and returned to Fort Klamath
to do laundry and regroup. Another nice
dinner at Crater Lodge later that evening, i.e. grilled salmon on spinach salad
with blue cheese, hazelnuts and apples and the chocolate torte. Really nice atmosphere, good service and
delicious fresh food.
After a nice walk
and another delicious breakfast I drove to Ashland, almost running out of gas! Glad most of the drive was downhill…Checked
into a little studio behind the big house which was nice and quiet and close to
town. Walked around the main street filled
with shops and stopped for a delicious tuna sandwich at Greenleaf, sitting
outside by the creek. Walked by the
theater to see where I would go the following evening and just generally got
familiar with Ashland. Went to the Green Stage at 6:45 p.m. to hear
some music and then walked over to Coquina on A street for a wonderful dinner, i.e.
rainbow carrot salad with pea sprouts, carrot puree and feta, figs with brie
and candied hazelnuts and chocolate torte with pomegranate sauce. One of the best meals so far.
Drove to Grant’s
Pass in the morning, stopped for breakfast and then took the Hellgate Rafting trip at 8:45 a.m. which was
really fun and scenic. Stopped in Jacksonville, a cute little town, on the way back to Ashland and visited the
cemetery which my guide book said was a “must see”. Took a nice walk in the park in Ashland and then had
dinner at Amuse, close to the theater. I
had shrimp with romesco sauce, fingerling potatoes and greens/sweetbreads with
bacon, pickled cherries and corn puree and chocolate truffle cake w/coffee ice
cream. Walked back to the theater to
catch a little of the Green Stage which was a Chinese performance of unusual
instruments and dancing. I saw the
Shakespeare play “Winter’s Tale” in the outside Elizabethan theater and it was
excellent.
Took a nice walk
in the park, had a pecan roll at Mix bakery on main street and then drove to Gold Beach,
stopping at Brookings to see the flora nursery where lots of fresh flowers are
grown and sent out all over the world.
Stayed at the Roque Riverlodge in a very cute little cabin close to the
river. I had called Tu Tu Tun Lodge to make
a reservation for dinner and it was wonderful!
Only about 10 minute drive from the lodge as well.
Appetizers at 6:15
p.m. on the patio where people could mingle, i.e. hush puppies, duck/apricot
skewers and avocado tempura. I was
probably the only one not staying at the lodge!
Sat at a table for 7 and enjoyed all the guests, some from England, South America,
etc. Dinner was served on a lazy
susan. First course was artichoke tomato
cream soup with cheese scones, followed by a plated salad with feta, tomatoes,
olives, etc. Main course was smoked pork
chops with blueberry sauce/four cheese macaroni and cheese/popovers and
blueberry goat cheese almond cake for dessert.
Took a walk in the
morning and then drove to Rachel’s Coffee house for bran muffin and great
coffee. On to Cape Sebastian
and walked down to the coast which was a lovely, windy road. Very windy when I got to the ocean and the
sand made it very hard to walk so I just went back up to the top. Lunch at Tu Tu Tun Lodge out on the patio –
so pleasant!! Had a falafel sandwich
with yogurt sauce in pita brad and a cookie and then walked along the
river. A beautiful area. Casual dinner at Port Hole on the harbor,
i.e. blackened cod and warm blackberry crunch pie with ice cream which they are
famous for.
Rachel’s for a
pecan roll for breakfast and then headed towards Florence,
stopping at Cape Blanco to visit the lighthouse, climbing the winding stairway up to the top to stand beside its spectacular Fresnel lens and
Hughes house, a dairy farm, where James Hughes was born and served 37 years at the lighthouse.
Stopped in Banden to see the historical center and had lunch at the
sourdough bakery near Coos bay. Checked
in at the Blue Heron B&B where I would be staying the night and drove on
into Eugene to
meet one of my daughter’s friends.
Wandered the city and then stopped at the market place to listen to a
celtic young man play an electric violin which was amazing!
There was an
enormous block party on third/van buren when I arrived at Grit Kitchen for
dinner. Must have been 10,000 people
partying the night away! Great little
restaurant with a short menu because of the party which was rather sad. I did enjoy the corn/jalapeno fritters
w/honey dipping sauce and the delicious peach/arugula salad with prosciutto and
blue cheese but would have loved an interesting dessert to finish…Wandered a
few minutes through the block party to see all the food trucks, music, etc.
before heading back to Florence
for the night.
Nice walk along
the river in the morning. Breakfast at 9
a.m. in the dining room was nice.
Delicious fruit with a sprinkling of coconut, goat cheese soufflé and
some toast and jam. First drove south to
see the Oregon
dunes so close to the ocean. Back to Florence to wander around
the cute little town before having marionberry pie a la mode for lunch. Stopped to visit the Haceta Lighthouse
perched up high and restored and on to Depoe
Bay where I stayed at Inn at Arch Rock with an ocean view. Relaxed for a bit to enjoy the view before
driving to Restaurant Beck in the Whale Cove Inn for dinner. Sat by the window and had hamachi w/puffed
rice and fennel/foie gras with blueberries/rockfish with green beans/steak
infused with anchovy butter and chocolate cremeux dessert. Supposedly during the summer their menu is a
bit subdued and it wasn’t as exciting as I would have expected but good
nonetheless.
Walked into Depoe Bay
in the morning along the ocean, stopped at Pirates Coffee House for a scone and
coffee and then to the Yaquina Head Lighthouse a few miles south. Also stopped in Nye
Beach in Newport and then drove on the otter trail to
see and walk down to devil’s punch bowl, i.e. a big crater filled with water,
which was awesome!
Stopped for lunch at
Lincoln city
and enjoyed a ½ tuna sandwich and ice cream cone at a cute little café before
heading to Newberg where I stayed at the best airbnb ever. It was a ranch/farm a bit away from town but
so beautiful, private and peaceful that I was glad to have booked two nights
there. Drove into town later to dine at
Jory Restaurant in the Allison
Inn and sat by the window
and had grilled romaine with proscuitto pieces, marinated strawberries, goat
cheese and spicy macona almonds/salmon with corn puree, corn bread pudding,
green pequine peppers and a chocolate trio for dessert – realllly delicious!
Took a nice walk in
the morning and then drove into Newberg for a sticky bun at the Newberg Bakery. On to Silver Falls State park where there are
many trails to choose from. I took the
trail to the north waterfall and saw 4 of the 10 waterfalls along the way. It was a beautiful trail and I especially
liked walking underneath the north waterfall – sooo lovely. Stopped in Mcminnville for lunch at La
Rambla, i.e. spinach salad with feta cheese, toasted pecans, roasted asparagus
w/romesco dressing/beef and winter squash empanadas with honey dipping sauce
and chocolate torte with pinot noir sauce.
Wandered around the town before stopping in Newberg to see what it was
like as well. Relaxed a bit at the
“ranch” and then drove back into town later for dinner at Ruddick/Wood where I
had grilled beets w/ricotta cheese and arugula, grilled octopus with grapefruit
and greens and caramel pudding. A local
place with good food but rather slow service, so slow actually that they gave
me the dessert on the house!!!
Walk in the
morning, sticky bun at Newberg Bakery and then off to Pacific City
to start the three cape route, an enchanting 35 mile byway to Tillamook. First stopped at Cape Kiwanda to see the 327
foot high haystack rock which juts out into the pacific ocean, on to Cape
Lookout where I walked about a half hour through the giant spruce and red cedar
trees and finally to at Cape Meares to visit the restored lighthouse built in
1890. Picked up the road to Tillamook
where I visited the Blue Heron Cheese Factory and then the enormous Tillamook
Factory to take a self-guided tour to see how they make and ship their famous
cheese.
Arrived in Astoria about 4 p.m. and loved the city which reminded me
of a mini San Francisco. My “suite” was perfect, quiet and close to
town. Walked down the hill to see what Astoria was about and
then drove to the harbor for dinner at Bridgefront Bistro. Sat at a table overlooking the water and had
a delicious arugula salad with dried cranberries, walnuts, goat cheese, apples,
crisp prosciutto and perfectly grilled salmon on top. Flourless chocolate cake was just okay…
Walked the
riverwalk in the morning, almond roll at Blue Scorcher Bakery and then up to
the 125 foot tall Astoria Column climbing its spiral staircase of 164 steps to
the top. The column has 14 friezes of
historical events in the early history of Oregon.
Drove to Washington over the 4.1 mile
Astoria-Megler bridge up to Cape Disappointment
where I took a couple trails to see the lighthouses. Stopped in Long Beach
to walk the little streets and visited the kite museum with kites from Japan, China,
Indonesia,
etc. Back over the bridge to Blue
Scorcher for lunch, i.e. ½ egg salad sandwich and a chocolate ginger cookie.
Spent an hour in
the Columbia Maritime
Museum learning about the fishermen as
well as the pilots who hop on the boats coming through the “bar” where the
pacific ocean meets the Columbia river and is
a very treacherous 17 mile stretch.
Wandered the little city and then returned to my little suite for a
rest. Walked down to Clemente’s on the
water for a wonderful dinner later in the evening. I had tuna poke with cucumber dice which was
fresh and delicious following by a mixed berry cake with ice cream, also
excellent.
Walked the
riverwalk again in the morning, this time I walked a bit farther to see the sea
otters. Almond roll at Blue Scorcher and
then drove to Westport to take the Wahkiakum County
car ferry to Puget
Island which takes about
15 minutes. Wandered down to the harbor
and around the town for a bit and then took the ferry back. Stopped nearby at Berry Patch for a piece of
their famous pie and ice cream before driving to Vernonia where I spent the
night. Rather nondescript little town
but charming in its own way. Had dinner
at Blue House Café, a middle eastern restaurant owned by two Armenian brothers
and it was surprisingly good, i.e. hummus, warm pita, chicken strips with
yogurt sauce, couscous with pistachios and raisins and a salad with tomatoes,
feta and olives.
Took a walk to the
lake in the morning and then had breakfast on the veranda. Drove to Portland, returned the car, took the tram to
“Sugar” where I had stayed before and left my luggage. Since it was Saturday, I stopped at the
Farmer’s market to pick up some peaches and berries and then walked to the
Saturday market where lots of handicrafts, etc. are sold in waterfront park. Stopped at Ben & Jerry’s for an ice cream
cone before walking to the walled Lan Su Chinese Gardens in Chinatown. It is the largest Suzhou-style garden outside
China
with a large lake, bridges, covered walkways, etc. Most of the plants featured in the garden are
indigenous to China. I had some black rose tea and some almond
cookies at the tea house while a young Chinese lady played a traditional string
instrument.
Dinner was close
by at Paley’s Place on 21st
Street. I
had a half portion of the salmon with carrot/fennel salad and blackberry sauce
finished by a rich chocolate torte with pomegranate sauce.
In the morning I
took a walk to Washington park, had a peach
hand pie at Sterling
and then spent most of the day walking through to rose gardens, Japanese
gardens and the Hoyt Arboretum, wandering through the spruce and fir
trees. Stopped at Café Haydn where I had
a schaffen Berger chocolate torte just like on my first day in Portland.
Walked to the waterfront park and to the “Bites of Oregon” festival with
its many food stands and entertainment.
Stopped again at Powell bookstore where you never tire of browsing and
then later that evening took a bus to Coquine restaurant in the Belmont area about 45
minutes away.
Cute little place
with very good food. I started with a
crisp socca pancake, followed by oil cured tuna (very tender and flaky) with
sesame seeds, dragon and filet beans and ended with a lemon panna cotta with
pine nut crunch and blackberries.
My final morning I
took a walk into the park, had my peach hand pie and then wandered up through
23rd – 36th streets where the nice mansions are, back
along 23rd north where I hadn’t been, stopping in some of the cute
little shops. Lunch at Imperial, a
pretty casual restaurant where I had a rockfish sandwich with homemade pickle
relish and greens and a ricotta cheesecake with raspberry pinto noir
sauce. MAX to the airport and I was home
in a couple hours. A very enjoyable trip
to be sure.
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