We have been wanting to visit the Crater Lake National Park for a long time. We tried combining it with our Seattle Trip or the NoCal Trip, but it was far from both the places, hence we decided to make a separate vacation just to adore this beauty.
We explored Portland and the Oregon coastline as well. I should say that the State of Oregon is so beautiful, very lush and green and feels fresh.
This was a 5 days 4 night trip and we flew in and out of PDX (Portland). We visited couple of days before the July 4th weekend.
Day 1: https://goo.gl/maps/s6zJYaNBnyCrtXzPA
We landed in PDX around 11 am, rented a car from the airport and headed out. The plan for the day is to spend the day at the Gorge.
1. Our first stop was the Portland Women's Forum State Scenic Viewpoint - This is a geographical landmark on the Oregon side of the Colombia River Gorge. It is a quick walk from the parking lot and the view is breathtaking.
2. Drive down the road to make a quick stop at the Crown point Vista House. This is another must see spot.
We made the below stops in the same order for the remaining of the day. We chose to drive through the Historic Columbia River Hwy to enjoy the scenic view.
4. Latourell Falls Trailhead: We skipped this trail as it is a 1.5 mile loop and would take close to 2 hours. to complete.
5. Sheppred Dell Falls: This is a short walk to the falls - 0.2miles.
6. Bridal Veil falls - Another scenic falls not to be missed. This route is full of beautiful falls and you cannot get enough of their breathtaking views.
This is again a short hike to the falls - 0.5 miles.
7. Wahkeena Falls - The hike to this falls is close to over 5 miles and we skipped this one.
8. Multnomah Falls - This is the most famous and most trafficked falls in this area. So do not miss this beauty. You can take in the view with a few steps from the parking lot.
There is a short hike that takes you to the middle of the falls and a great photo op!
There is also a shop in front to grab a snack and take a break.
9. Bradford Island Visitor Center:
Quick stop to check out the exhibits and a stroll to stretch our legs.
10. Bridge of the Gods:
This is another must do spots in the Gorge. It is a toll bride that spans across the Columbia River, between the Cascade locks, Oregon and Washington.
Once we crossed the bridge to the Washington side, we drove to our nights stay at the Comfort Suits at Cascade locks. We drove in the Washington side and again crossed the river by the Hood River Bridge.
Checked into our room and done for the day.
We had breakfast at the hotel, checked out in around 8 AM and checked out.
1. Wah Gwin Gwin Falls: It is a small falls, quick stop in the morning before we start the day.
3. Hood River Fruit Loop - This road is located in the foot of the majestic Mt.Hood. Just driving through the loop, we were able to enjoy the lush greens on both sides with variety of fruits, vegetables, wineries and flowers. The fruit stands are open during the harvest time which changes from year to year depending on the climate. There are lot of places to stop and take a bite from the locals.
4. Packer Orchards and Bakery - We stopped here to try out the local delicacies. They had a varied range from ice creams to jams to pies and what not. We tried some local flavor ice cream, and pies and picked up some jam as well.
5. Hood River Lavender Farms: The fruit loop is famous for its Lavender farms, there are many farms to park and walk around. It is a great place to get some beautiful pictures.
6. Mt Hood National Forest: Next stop was for lunch at the Mt Hood National Forest. We had packed a picnic lunch and enjoyed it with the view of a lake and the mountain.
7. Government Camp - Quick stop to grab a coffee and again enjoy the views of the mountain.
Next stop was to Roseburg, where we stayed for the night.
As usual had an early start after breakfast at the hotel and headed to Crater Lake National Park which is close to 2 hours drive.
The main attraction as the name says is the Crater Lake. The park is pretty much the lake itself which is huge and you can go around the lake.
It was a bright and sunny day and since we went in July, there were traces of snow so we enjoyed that as well. We spent pretty much the full day here and looped the full lake.
On the way back to Roseburg, we stopped at Diamond Lake for a quick break. Had snacks at the restaurant there and spent an hour just playing around.
1. Mrytle Point - There is a covered bridge - Sandy Creek Covered Bridge to check out if you are a fan like us.
2. Coos Bay - We checked out the Cape Arago State Park. There is a 1.2 mile loop trail which we took, very scenic and simple trail.
3. Dunes City - you can pretty much stop anywhere to view or walk over the dunes. It is a fun spot for the kids to run over the dunes and stretch your legs.
4. Heceta Lighthouse- We stopped at the Heceta Lighthouse in this spot, which is past the city of Florence. It is a short walk to the lighthouse from the parking spot.
5. Yachats - We checked out the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area. Very beautiful place, there are a couple of hikes in this area if you are interested, but we skipped them.
6. New Port - Last stop for the day - we stayed here for the night. We reached here in the evening so we had time to roam around the town. Newport is a fishing town and we took a stroll in the Bay Street Pier.
Very friendly people and you get a great view of the Newport bridge from this pier.
Last day of the trip, we wanted to check out few more spots before we head to the airport to catch our evening flight.
1. Yaqina Head Lighthouse:
Oregon has many lighthouses and we had to check out another one before we left the state. This one was very close to the place we stayed. And this also happens to be the tallest in Oregon.
2. Agate Beach: Though we are from San Diego and live in the beach pretty much everyday, that does not mean we are bored of them! Had to check out atleast one beach in the Oregon coastline and we spent some time in the Agate beach. This was pretty much in front of our hotel so perfect to head back to clean up and refresh before we check out.
After a fun morning at the beach, we checked out and on our way to the airport. But we wanted to check out a few more covered bridges en route!
3.Chitwood Covered Bridge:
4. Harris Covered Bridge:
That comes to the end of our trip, drove back to PDX and boarded the flight back home.
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