sandy49

We will be visiting the Columbia River Gorge area in late July this year. We like to hike and see the scenery and waterfalls. Is one day enough time to spend here?

Thanks again--this site is really helping me plan this trip.

tomfuller

It depends entirely on how much you want to hike and how many waterfalls you want to see besides Multnomah.
Drive the old US 30 to see more waterfalls.
Where are you staying? Try for the Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood or one of the places in the town of Hood River.
Many younger people sailboard on the Columbia River near Hood River.

happytrailstoyou

Is one day enough time to spend here?

There are loads of hikes to consider: http://www.portlandhikersfieldguide....er_Gorge_Hikes

Hood River is a delightful town. There we like to stay at the Best Western, which has rooms with balconies right on the river--and they come with a hearty breakfast served in a river-view dining room.

HTTY

spirobulldog

We saw Mutlnomah Falls and Horsetail Falls and a couple of others. We also stopped and watched the sailboat kites, plus stopped at several view points.

We did the Eagle Creek Trail which is about 12 miles or so. The trail is fairly level and easy. The trail passes by Punch Bowl Falls and then you go under/in/through Tunnel Falls.

Anyway, we did all of that in a day. As Tom and HTTY mention there are a ton of good hikes there.

InSandy

A one day trip through the gorge is possible if you don't want to do many long hikes. We started our day in Maryhill and headed west. We were able to see most of the main falls, visit Bonneville Dam and locks, and Beacon Rock and get sunset from Vista Point. I hiked to Ponytail falls and Elowah, we spent a little more time at Multanomah and ate dinner at the lodge there. I would love to have spent more time, but I was happy that we were able to see as much as we did.

Gardyloo

Think about staying at the Edgefield - http://www.mcmenamins.com/54-edgefield-home

sandy49

Thanks everyone. I think we will stick with our original plan of staying there for two nights. It looks like there will be plenty of hikes.

HTTY and Gardyloo, thanks for the lodging suggestions.

HTTY, thank you so much for the hiking guide--very informative.

happytrailstoyou

While we were in the Columbia River Gorge this past weekend we enjoyed one of our favorite drives--WA-14 from Maryhill to Washougal. We love the views of the river from the Washington side.

One evening we drove on OR-35 and surrounding roads for spectacular views of Mt Hood and, driving back to Hood River on 35, the views of Mt Adams (WA) were also quite amazing.

In case you are interested in wineries, there are some good ones in the Gorge: http://www.winesnw.com/gorgemap.html

HTTY

Tomsd

I would recommend that you drive along the Gorge and see the 7 Waterfalls - with Multnomah being the highest/most spectacular - and they also have a restaurant with a glass roof so you can also see the falls while having a snack.

Then - I would continue on to Hood River and from there - an hour or so south to Mt. Hood - and stay at the classic Timberline Lodge - with plenty of hiking choices there. http://www.timberlinelodge.com/

Patti

I drove from Portland to The Dalles last summer along Rt 30 and absolutely loved it. I stopped at all the waterfalls along the way, started to walk to the top of Multnomah but turned back after the sign that said, "switchback 5 of 22." Continued beyond Hood River and followed Rt 30 when it turned inland and the landscape changed from rainforest to semi-arid, which I was not expecting at all. It is spectacular. There are spots along the way to stop and watch the para-sailors and windsurfers (how do they get out there?) and several scenic overlooks.

On the way back to Portland the next day I took the road to Mt. Hood, stopping along the way at several fruit stands (more cherry varieties than I had ever seen!) If you have the opportunity, take the tour of the Timberline Lodge with its beautiful WPA murals and arts and crafts details.

One other thing I enjoyed very much was the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center in The Dalles, which is part natural history museum, part history museum, has a neat botanical garden, raptor talks. (http://gorgediscovery.org/index.html)

Enjoy! I think often of this trip and hope to explore this area further some day!

sandy49

Thanks everyone. I think we will stick with our original plan of staying there for two nights. It looks like there will be plenty of hikes.

HTTY and Gardyloo, thanks for the lodging suggestions.

HTTY, thank you so much for the hiking guide--very informative.