Hip and happening Portland may be Oregon’s main attraction, and it does make a great homebase, considering it’s home to excellent hotels like The Jupiter, with its hip, mid-century vibe, and The Nines, a chic, art-filled property downtown. But there are plenty of other worthy escapes within just a few hours drive from the city. In fact, when it comes to day trips from PDX, you can take your pick: You’ll find beautiful beaches, impressive hikes, intriguing art scenes, foodie delights and more. Whatever your passion, there’s a pit stop or two (or three) just a stone’s throw from the City of Roses.
RELATED: 6 Reasons Snow Lovers Must Visit Mt. Hood, Oregon
The Art Lover: Lake Oswego
Trover photo by Adrienne Auten Ceccacci
This town of less than 40,000 residents is big on art. In downtown and throughout the city you’ll find 70 sculptures, of all shapes, sizes and material—including glass, steel and stone. Many works are crafted by locals or other artists from the Northwest. Newbies and established pros get a chance to showcase their work on street corners, park plazas, at Oswego City Hall and elsewhere. It’s called the Gallery Without Walls and it defines the city. Meanwhile, the Arts Council of Lake Oswego runs 510 Museum & ARTspace, a gallery with 10 rotating monthly exhibitions. It also sponsors family art-making days, adult painting lessons and community events like Drink & Draw, where visitors drink, paint and meditate. There are summer concerts in the parks while the Lakewood Center for the Arts boasts cultural programming and is home to the annual Festival of the Arts. Famished after a full day of inspiration? No worries, there are good eats, too. Drop in at Holy Taco, 5 Spice Seafood & Wine Bar or Baird’s on B.
Distance from Portland: Approx 25 mins
The Brunch Guy/Gal: Sherwood
Our Table Cooperative | Photo courtesy of MtHoodTerritory.com
For a Sunday brunch you’ll always remember, make your way to Our Table Cooperative in Sherwood. Set on a 60-acre farm, guests sit at a large, long, elegantly-styled community table and get to know locals. With mimosas flowing, the chatting picks up and strangers become friends. Expect an outrageous three-course meal with local ingredients. A recent brunch was a feast and included Oregon escalivada—grilled, then chilled late spring and early summer vegetables, white bean puree, popped quinoa and herbs. This was followed by a wild mushroom biscuit and gravy, soft hen’s egg, micro salad and crisped shallots. Topping off the meal were overnight oats Budino with blueberry basil compote, salted honey whip, toasted oats and coconut.
Distance from Portland: Approx 40 mins
The Wine Enthusiast: North Plains
Wine lovers won’t want to miss Abbey Creek Vineyards.
There’s nothing typical about Bertony Faustin. He’s Oregon’s first African-American winemaker, and he quit wine school after three months and decided to learn by doing. His Abbey Creek Vineyard label, now 10 years old, offers a mix of estate wines, such as Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris, as well as wines produced from grapes sourced from across Oregon. At his North Plains tasting room, expect the unexpected. Faustin’s likely to be in his signature overalls, laughing and chatting up customers. The vibe is chill with jazz, hip hop or R&B playing. The Chardonnay is so popular you see some people not satisfied to buy a bottle or two, and instead getting a case. Bet you’ve never had your winery nibbles topped with Brazilian hot sauces. That’s just one more reason to stop in for a truly unique experience.
Distance from Portland: Approx 30 mins
The Beach Bum: Cannon Beach
Check watching the sun set at Cannon Beach off your bucket list.
Cannon Beach in the crown jewel of Oregon’s North Coast. It is first and foremost beloved for Haystack Rock, a sea stack and the third largest monolith of its kind in the world. Stroll the nine miles of wide sandy beach, choose your favorite water sport, watch the wildlife and let yourself soak in all that makes Cannon Beach a storybook locale and film favorite (scenes from The Goonies, Point Break and Twilight were filmed here). And don’t miss the stunning sunsets here—the dramatic profiles created by the rock formations against the sun’s rich warm hues are unforgettable.
Distance from Portland: Approx 1 hr, 45 mins
The Hiker: Vernonia
Mother Nature doesn’t get much better than at Banks-Vernonia State Trail.
When you’re ready to get your walk on, discover the Banks-Vernonia State Trail. Wind through 21 miles of pine-scented forests, greenery (and more greenery), streams, wildflowers and wildlife. A day-long brush with nature doesn’t get much better than this. What’s makes this particular excursion even cooler is that the eight-foot wide trail is built along an abandoned rail line.
Distance from Portland: Approx 35 mins
The Nature Lover: Sauvie Island
If your paradise means berry picking and bird watching, you’ve come to the right place.
It’s hard to imagine that just 10 miles from downtown Portland lies 24,000 acres of all things nature. Sauvie Island is one of the largest river islands in the country. Set in the middle of the Columbia River, the island gives you plenty to fill your day trip, be it bird-watching, biking, kayaking, lounging on the beach, fishing or berry picking (think strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, loganberries and Marionberries).
Distance from Portland: Approx 35 mins
The Foodie: Hillsboro
Hillsboro is a foodie’s dream come true!
In Hillsboro, discover restaurants like the South Store Café, a lunch spot housed in a 100-year-old clapboard building and featuring hyper-locally sourced food. The café boasts a full coffee bar, pastries, sandwiches, salads and more. Another plus: The walls are a rotating gallery of sorts for local artists. Meanwhile, the Smith Berry Barn hosts farm-to-table dinners in the summer. But the latest talk of the Tualatin Valley food scene is Industry Restaurant. It’s a cool industrial/warehouse-style eatery, with an expansive menu of cuisine from Spain, Italy and South America—done with a Portland twist!
Distance from Portland: Approx 30 mins
The Small-Town Seeker: Oregon City
Live out your childhood dreams by making it to the real-life end of the Oregon Trail.
If you’re looking for that traditional Main Street America feel, Oregon City is your spot. The Oregon City Municipal Elevator is a 130-foot elevator connecting downtown to mid-town and is the only outdoor municipal elevator in the U.S. (and one of only four in the world). Also be sure to check out Ruud Jeweler’s, which has been around since the ’60s, as well as the old-school flea market in the Elks Lodge. Other interesting local businesses include vintage shops, cool restaurants and specialty stores. Eclectic for sure. Oregon City is also the end of the Oregon Trail and 2018 marks its 175th anniversary. The End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center is the place to learn about the half-year journey some 500,000 people made from Missouri to Oregon between the 1840s and 1860s. Check out the video, hands-on displays and make like it’s the 19th century and craft your own candles and butter.
Distance from Portland: Approx 25 mins
Sheryl Nance-Nash
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Strange this post is totaly unrelated to what I was searching google for, but it was listed on the first page. I guess your doing something right if Google likes you enough to put you on the first page of a non related search.