Portland and Seattle Visit

[pastordan]

I am heading on a mini-vacation to Portland, Seattle and the Cascades in a couple days. Any suggestions on places to go things to do? I will have a couple kilts on hand of course, if you are in one of those areas I would love to meet you for a pint! Just keep in mind, I will have a teenager with me.

[scottmphoto]

I lived in Oregon for seven years. If you like nature, I'd suggest taking a drive up the Columbia River Gorge. There are hundred of waterfalls and lots of hiking trails. Visit Multomah Falls, it's beautiful.

Not close to Portland, but if you get a chance, head over to the coast to Newport. If you like seafood, check out Mo's (you can look them up online - Mo's Clam Chowder). The original (they have several places now but the original is a small place on the bayfront in Newport) has THE best (it's actually world famous) clam chowder and there's a store down the street a bit that makes the best salt-water taffy.

[TheOfficialBren]

Dang! I was in Portland and the surrounding area this weekend for a funeral. No kilt. Not appropriate for this particular occasion but I did wonder at one point whether or not any X-markers were in the area. I saw an SCA sticker on a car in the hotel parking lot and immediately thought of (specifically Didymous as well as) the whole rabble.

[Hawk]

Dan, if you're here on Tuesday, we're having a monthly Kilted Night Out at 7:30p at the Horse Brass Pub, 4534 SE Belmont St., Portland, OR 97215. There will probably be between 10-15 folks enjoying Fish N Chips and telling tall tales ( some even Kilted, as we encourage it being a " kilted night out"). We'd love to see you there....

Hawk

[The farqcom]

Well, no visit to the Cascades would be complete unless you do Crater Lake NP, if you do hit Newport, Nana's Irish Pub, some of the best food in Newport, also Rogue Brewing is in Newport if you like craft beer, good food also, the Hatfield aquarium is great also. Mt. St. Helens Observatory, Mount Rainier NP, The Rose Gardens in Portland, Portland Zoo, Fort Stevens NP in Astoria, OR

[pastordan]

Dan, if you're here on Tuesday, we're having a monthly Kilted Night Out at 7:30p at the Horse Brass Pub, 4534 SE Belmont St., Portland, OR 97215. There will probably be between 10-15 folks enjoying Fish N Chips and telling tall tales ( some even Kilted, as we encourage it being a " kilted night out"). We'd love to see you there....

Hawk

Bummer, we won't be there until Wednesday. Thanks anyway!

[pastordan]

Well, no visit to the Cascades would be complete unless you do Crater Lake NP, if you do hit Newport, Nana's Irish Pub, some of the best food in Newport, also Rogue Brewing is in Newport if you like craft beer, good food also, the Hatfield aquarium is great also. Mt. St. Helens Observatory, Mount Rainier NP, The Rose Gardens in Portland, Portland Zoo, Fort Stevens NP in Astoria, OR

We are planning on being out in the Cascades Sunday - Thursday (flying out of Portland Thursday evening), should we consider heading to Newport for a day or two instead of 4-5 days in Leavenworth?

[KiltedKnome]

Well, you could jump on the Clipper (passenger-only ferry between Seattle and Victoria, British Columbia), and visit the XMarkers in Victoria!

[ratspike]

FYI about kilt night at the Horse Brass on Tuesday. It's a bar, so no minors allowed after 7pm.

Lots of cool in Portland for sure. If you're going to be downtown, Powell's City of Books is justifiably famous and is worth a visit. Head across the street to Sizzle Pie and grab a slice for lunch, then over to Cupcake Jones for something sweet. If you're going to be in town over the weekend you might check out the Portland Saturday Market. There are some other cool little spots scattered about but IMO, downtown and the Pearl District are a pretty sterile experience. Overpriced shops, luxury condos, and people in from the 'burbs for the day.

Inner SE Portland is where much of the funky and cool is. SE Hawthone from about 50th down to the 20s can easily take up the better part of an afternoon. Fat Straw for bubble tea, Oasis Cafe or McMenamin's Bagdad Theater for a slice and a pint, Ben & Jerry's for a cone. There's loads of nifty little shops. Some of my personal favorites are Powell's Books on Hawthorne, Escentials, Pastaworks and the Gold Door. Some more shopping suggestions here: http://www.travelportland.com/articl...orne-shopping/

Marino Adriatic Cafe at 41st & SE Division has the best Turkish coffee in the PDX.

Also, food carts! It's become a pretty big thing in Portland and there are several big pods in SE. Cartopia is at 12th & SE Hawthorne. Check out the the poutine and fried pies. There's another pod at about 42nd & SE Belmont.

You will probably be told that OMFG Voodoo Doughnuts is OMFG AWESOME and you should OMFG GO THERE!!!!! This is not true. The only thing about Voodoo that's not completely ordinary is the line that you'll almost definitely have to wait in.

If you want to get outside you have lots to do right in town, or just a very short drive. The Historic Columbia River Highway is a really pretty drive, lots of waterfalls and photo ops, and ends at Multnomah Falls. Mt. Tabor Park is on the outskirts of SE PDX and is built on an extinct volcano. Forest Park and Powell Butte Nature Park would both be fabulous choices for an afternoon hike or a walk.

[ratspike]

It's worth mentioning that Portland is a lovely city for wearing a kilt too. I've rarely seen one in the wild, but it's a laid back, no-big-deal place. The weather forecast is looking perfect this week too, cool and a bit of rain. Nothing not to like IMO.