Salem OR as a good base for short holiday?
 

I'm planning a short holiday in Oregon with my sister in mid-June and trying to pick a base for our trip. I'm flying out from NYC on the weekend of June 13 to take a photography workshop in Portland (Sat-Sun). My sister will drive down from Bellingham on the Sunday to meet me. We'll do some exploring on Monday-Tuesday, and then drive together to Seattle on Wednesday, where I'll catch a late afternoon flight back to NYC.

We definitely will be travelling to Eugene (either on Monday or Tuesday) to visit the Cascades Raptor Center because my husband adopted a turkey vulture in my name as Christmas present and I want to meet her :) I love photographing animals, so I'm hoping to photograph the raptors at the Center again (I visited there a few years ago). If I'm lucky, I might be able to swing an insider's tour - I'd love to see behind the scenes because I volunteer for a wild bird rehabilitation center in NYC.

Aside from that visit, we have nothing specific we need to do, but we want to visit a couple of wineries, and I'd like to practise what I learned in the workshop (with Eddie Soloway) by photographing some nature scenes. And we probably want to go for an easy walk/hike in a park or something similar. Proximity (e.g., 30 minutes' drive or so) to decent restaurants would be a plus.

I'm thinking that Salem might be a good base, since it's about an hour from Portland, an hour from Eugene (where the raptor center is located), relatively close to some of the wine areas, and about a 4-hour (maybe 4 and a bit) drive to Seattle. The flight I'm looking at leaves at 4 pm, so we'd probably want to leave Salem by 10 am.

I had looked into staying in a B&B (I stayed in a really nice one a couple of years ago in McMinnville), but B&Bs tend to have king or queen beds. I love my Sis, but I want my own bed, so that points in the direction of a regular hotel (and there's often more choice in a larger town like Salem). I noticed they've got a well-reviewed Hampton Inn there, and I've got a boatload of Hilton points I could use.

What do you think, and do you have a suggestion other than Salem?

I don't consider Salem a very interesting spot for basing your trip- it might be convenient for you but not too exciting- but if you only have a couple of days, it might work.

McMinnville has places to stay other than B&B's- that sounds more appealing to me than Salem.

There is a beautiful hike at Silver Falls State park - close to Salem- it has 12 waterfalls and of course, would be a great place to practice photography, but farther than 30 min drive and would take a good part of the day to enjoy.

If you want to walk while you are in Eugene, there are paved paths along the river, paths at Alton Baker park or Hendricks park which is a great place to practice photography with a large array of flowers and trees.

Have you thought about staying at the coast? Newport maybe? But that might require more driving than you want.

Agree with sunbum. If you go South east of of Eugene on Rt. 58, you have a fair chance of seeing some wildlife near this covered bridge. http://www.oregon.com/willamette_val...covered_bridge
If you want to stay close to I-5, check on Corvallis.

Stay in Eugene, or as was suggested,Corvallis. Salem is no vacation.

Thanks for the suggestions. So why doesn't anybody like Salem (just curious)?

Eugene is a little too far South to use as a base for the trip, because we want to drive all the way back to Seattle in time for me to catch a 3:30 flight (and don't want to have to start at daybreak). We certainly plan to explore around Eugene - just not rest our heads there at night. Corvallis also looks a bit too far South and Newport a bit too far west to use as a home base. I will take a closer look at McMinnville options again.

Salem is OK, just some of the other cities seems nicer, more walkable, etc.
McMinnville, as others suggested, is a good alternative. Many winery tasting rooms downtown,good restaurants, close enough to other wineries and, as also suggested, Siver Falls, a really nice spot for using your newly acquired photo skills,

Agree Salem is OK- just not a place I would want to vacation but sounds like mostly you will sleep there.

Bush Park in Salem is nice with some walking trails and surrounded by a nice neighborhood with older homes and gardens.

When you are in Eugene you might check out the Delta Ponds- may see bald eagles, herons, osprey etc.
There is also an eagle nest on Skinner Butte so we frequently see eagles up there.

Have you spent time in Portland before? I'd stay there, it's an easy day trip to Eugene then hit some wineries on your way back. Salem is not known for it's beauty or much to do so any of the other suggestions are preferred. :)

It's only 4:10 from Corvallis to SeaTac airport (south of Seattle).
If you're riding in your sister's car, you could fly home from PDX instead of SEA.