Travelkitty

I'll have about 3.5 days in Oregon in mid-October to add on to a quick trip to Portland. I've been to Portland a couple times before, so I'd like to use the time to explore some of the surrounding region - although it's not much time.

My main interests are pretty natural scenery and walking around smaller towns to get a feel of the area. For this trip I'm not that interested in shopping or cultural attractions.

Since I have such a short time, my rough plan was:

Day 1: arrive in Portland mid-day and drive to the coast - probably around Seaside or Astoria. Spend the rest of the day just exploring in the region.

Day 2: spend the morning driving up towards Astoria with some stops along the way. Then drive to St Helens region. Spend the night somewhere along the river area on my way to the Columbia River Gorge.

Day 3: explore the Columbia River Gorge area and try to do some of the shorter hikes (or one longer day hike).. Spend the night in the Columbia River Gorge area

Day 4, drive down to Bend and spend the afternoon there.

Day 5: early drive back to Portland

I know it's a lot of moving around, but I really want to see a lot of different parts of the region. I've heard Bend is a fun town, but if there was any part of the trip I might cut off if necessary, it would be that. Let me know if anyone has any suggestions for specific towns or hotels along the way. My main goal is to see some pretty, restufl scenery - and I don't mind driving as long as it's not on congested highways.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

passerbye

Okay.... first bag the idea of "Seaside or Astoria" and head to Cannon Beach. Besides Ecola State Park to the north, there's Oswald West and Hug Point (and Arcadia) State Parks south of town, plus if the weather's lousy, you'll much prefer hanging out in Cannon Beach to being in Seaside. Unless you like video arcades and carnival games.

Day 2 - there's little to see between Cannon Beach and Astoria, and depending on the weather, besides the Astor Column and Cape Disappointment State Park (in WA), I question how much time you'll want for Astoria. So I think you could safely plan to reach the Columbia River Gorge by the end of the day. Alternatively, spend two nights on the coast and get an early morning start to the Gorge on day 3. It's less than a 3-hour drive, which leaves the afternoon for sightseeing.

Day 5 - return to Portland via hwys 20/22, through Sisters and over the Santiam Pass. Beautiful scenery over that route.

LittleA

Crazy itinerary - PDX to Coast to Bend and back to PDX in 5 days? That would be like trying to see all of Ireland in 5 days. With 5 days it is either the coast or mountains, not both. I suggest - head up the Gorge to Skamania Lodge and spend the first night, explore Hood River and hike Dog Mountain, then drive toward Central Oregon. Spend the night at McMenamins in Bend, drive west over Santiam Pass and spend a night or two in wine country, return to Portland.

I am always shocked by how people on this board think they can drive all around Oregon - from Portland to Bend to Crater Lake to Astoria in one week and experience anythign meaningful except talking with gas station attendants.

Oregon is huge and the roads you will be on are two lanes, twisting and turning, over mountain passes with steep drop offs sometimes and log trucks and farm equipment on them and senior Oregonians who drive - well, you know - God Bless them and people full of micro brews. Bite off less and chew more. We have no high speed rail or autobahns. Slow is a key word in Orygun.

CarolJean

No way would it be any fun to drive to Bend for the afternoon. You have been given some good suggestions. Have a great trip. CJ

passerbye

LittleA makes at least one good point; you minimize backtracking by heading directly out to the Gorge from PDX, looping down to Bend, then finishing on the coast. Another plus of that route would be that your drive back to Portland on day 5 would only be 1.5 hours, give or take. The longest drive would be Bend to the coast: 5 hours or so.

As to his/her other comments, it's all a matter of preference. I too would rather stop in a place long enough to more experience it than simply drive through looking at the scenery. But there is nothing about your plans that make them undoable. And IMO, the "..twisting and turning, over mountain passes with steep drop offs.." is a bit of an exaggeration, at least over the route you're planning to drive.

LittleA

"..twisting and turning, over mountain passes with steep drop offs.." It is a bit of an exagerration, but my point is that the roads are not freeways, but two lane highways through mountainous terrain, along rivers, etc. As an Oregon native, I have seen and know of plenty of accidents on our roads from people trying to go too fast - that's all I was saying. Case in point:

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index...wn_the_mo.html

passerbye

If being an Oregon native counts for something (but I think we'd agree that it usually doesn't these days), so am I.

Travelkitty

Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I had originally planned a whole week for the trip, which still wouldn't be enough for everything I want to see. I guess I'm still a little too eager to try to get a taste of the different regions in the few days I have.

I'll try to trim the activities down (including skipping Mt Helens). Also thanks for the suggestions on the coast towns if I'm only going to have time to see one or two.

I'm assuming with my limited time, this trip will just be enough to whet my appetite and make me want to come back for longer stays in the regions.