| Sara |
Jun 11th, 2002 01:09 PM |
Florence is a nice day trip - about an hour. A fun coastal town. There are some great sand dunes and you can rent ATV's if that sounds fun. Take or rent a kite. <BR><BR>Portland is doable in a day trip - probably 1.5 hrs. There is tons to do up there - Japanese Garden, Chinese Garden, Rose Garden, Art Museum, Saturday Market, walk along the river....<BR><BR>McKenzie River - just drive along the highway and stop where it looks fun. Beautiful but expect the water to be cold! Belknap Springs is beautiful - wonderful gardens and hot springs pool. You can pay a daily fee ($3 I think) and enjoy them all day. Take a picnic. <BR><BR>Clear Lake - where the McKenzie comes from - a beautiful lake and very clear (duh) you can still see trees standing under the lake. VERY cold so no swimming, but there is a trail around the lake (not short) and you can rent rowboats. Clear Lake and Belknap could be a one day trip. I come from the north to those places so I don't know times but I would guess about an hour outside Eugene...<BR><BR>South there is Ashland, not a day trip but there are great Shakespeare plays down there. Wild Life Safari, a large game park with all kinds of animals roaming free and you drive through and get to see them. WLS is in Winston probably less than an hour south. <BR><BR>Newport is another town on the coast that I really enjoy, has a wonderful aquarium and great beaches. I think less than an hour north of Florence. In a long day you could do a loop from Eugene to Florence, to Newport to Corvallis down I-5 to Eugene. The drive along Hwy 101 is beautiful, stop lots to look and admire. You could stay a night in Newport too to have more time. <BR><BR>In Eugene itself, I enjoy the 5th Street Public Market. Hendricks Park on the hills is pretty, unfortunately you will probably miss the rhodies but it is still pretty, a view of Eugene. While I don't do malls on vacation there is a fairly nice one - Valley River. There are wonderful bike paths if you find a place to rent bikes or just walk. <BR><BR>Eating..... Mona Leeza is Italian, Brooks Brothers BBQ (I think that is the name) though it might not be great for vegetarian. In Corvallis 45 minutes north, there is a totally vegetarian restaurant, Nearly Normals. I don't know very many restaurants down there so I can't be of much assistance.<BR><BR>Let me know if you have more questions.
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