Here is my initial itinerary for our 12 day Washington/Oregon vacation starting in Sept, the day after Labor Day. I%26#39;m hoping the excellent board members here can lend some advice/recommendations. The trip is 2 adults (no kids) who are looking mainly for sight-seeing experiences in the NW. In regards to hiking, nothing major (maybe 30-60 min. paths).
DAY 1 -- Arrive in Seattle early afternoon. Take the ferry (not sure which ferry line) to Port Angeles to spend the night.
DAY 2 -- Tour Olympic National Park. Spend the night around Lake Quinault or Olympia (????)
DAY 3 -- Tour southern stretch portion of Mt Rainier and visit Mt St Helens. Spend the night in Portland.
DAY 4 -- Visit Columbia Gorge/Mt Hood; return to room in Portland.
DAY 5 (Sat.) -- Portland
DAY 6 -- Depart Portland and visit Sisters/Newberry Monument/Cascades Lake Hwy. Spend night in Bend, OR.
DAY 7 -- Drive to Crater Lake. Spend the night in Grants Pass, OR or Crescent City, CA (????)
DAY 8 -- Spend most of the day in the CA Redwoods, likely Jedediah Smith St Park). Spend night in either Crescent City or Gold Beach, OR. (?????)
DAY 9 -- Starting in either Crescent City or Gold Beach, work our way northward, up the Oregon coast. Spend the night in Newport, OR.
DAY 10 -- Continue coastal sight-seeing. Spend the night in Seaside, OR.
DAY 11 -- Head directly to Seattle, and spend the day there.
DAY 12 -- Depart from SEA-TAC late morning and prepare for jet-lag.
One consideration was to omit Day 6 in the Bend area and spend an extra day in the Mt Rainier/Mt St Helens area (Day 4, which shifts the above Days 4-6 back 1 day), which do you think is better?
I%26#39;m not sure on Days 2, 7, and 8 what towns make the most sense to lodge...I%26#39;m trying to even or balance out those heavy driving days.
Thanks for your assistance.
12-Day OR/WA Vacation Itinerary...Your Thoughts
I think you%26#39;ll enjoy the Bend area, although my guess is that you folks are going to enjoy just about everywhere :-) The volcanic attractions are quite different. Don%26#39;t miss the lava cave - a truly unique experience!
From Bend to Crater Lake it%26#39;s about 1.5 hours. Allow 3-4 hours there. There is a good selection of lodging in Grants Pass. It is about two hours from there to Crescent City. I think you%26#39;d be just fine to take a chance and not pre-book, just see how tired you are and if you want to drive to Crescent City.
Coastal cities. If you have your hearts set on oceanfront lodging, you will need to book ahead. There is a range of types and prices. Would suggest other more scenic towns rather than Seaside, but not sure your budget or lodging preference?
12-Day OR/WA Vacation Itinerary...Your Thoughts
Are you planning to explore the west or east side of the Olympic peninsula? The drive down 101 along the Hood Canal is lovely. Stop in Brinnon and eat at the Halfway House or the Geoduck Tavern (if either of them are still open, that is... it%26#39;s been years since I have spent much time up there)!
Regarding the Oregon Coast I%26#39;m going to repeat what others have said in different threads... drive south down the coast if you can. You%26#39;ll be in the ';ocean lane'; and will find it much easier to turn out into the parks and lookout areas. I also prefer Yachats over Newport, and it%26#39;s an easy drive in between.
I agree and I think you%26#39;ll like Bend as well. It%26#39;s a different area from the coast and valley - high desert with lots of lakes and rock formations. You could spend weeks just exploring the Cascade Lakes and Paulina areas near Bend...
Looks like you have a good plan for a fun road trip. Enjoy!
You%26#39;ll find my reply in the WA forum.
Half-Brit, we are on a budget. Are there some properties you would recommend on the Northern fringe of the coast. Astoria would be great but everything seemed pricey; hence, Seaside.
Also, can you get a good flavor of the CA Redwoods without going too far south into the state? I was hoping the areas around Cresent City and perhaps up to Grants Pass would provide some ample redwood viewing opportunities without traveling down to Eureka or the Avenue.
And, last question for now. Regarding the Oregon coast. We will be driving the entire coasts. What areas/towns do you consider must see %26amp; stop?
Hi, don%26#39;t mean to get picky here, but what is your lodging budget? To some, ';on a budget'; means around $150/night. To others, it means under $100/night - or even less if possible. I%26#39;m in the latter category, LOL!
There are many redwoods around Crescent City. You should have time to drive Howland Hill Road which is lovely, and if you drive a bit south on Hwy 101 you%26#39;ll be right in the redwoods even on the main highway.
redwoodhikes.com/Jed%20Smith/Jed%20Smith.html
www.nps.gov/archive/redw/scenic_drives.html
There are several short walks along Howland Hill road, however, you do not have to ';hike'; anywhere to see the beautiful trees.
Have you looked at Crescent Beach Motel? Older property, well kept up, right on the ocean, very reasonably priced:
http://www.crescentbeachmotel.com/
Oregon coast . . . Bandon is a pleasant town ... at Winchester Bay you might want to take a short sidetrip and view the huge dunes ... Gardiner is an historic little wide spot ... Yachats is very pretty ... Newport has a great bay with tours, fun bayfront, two lighthouses ... Depoe Bay is unique ... Tillamook has the WWII blimp hanger ... Wheeler and Nehalem are both attractive tiny towns ... Cannon Beach is very upscale, artsy but do see Haystack Rock ... Astoria is an attractive larger city on the river. Well, actually there are are only a few towns that are *not* attractive / quaint / pretty / charming, etc!
At Reedsport, take Highway 38 inland for about 3-4 miles to the Dean Creek Elk Viewing. In Newport, go to the bayfront and see the sea lions from about 15%26#39; away, near Port Dock 1.
Oh, forgot to say, are you thinking of oceanfront / view lodging? Inexpensive is harder to find, but it is there :-)
Half-Brit, thanks for your suggestions. Glad to hear about the Redwoods near Crescent...someone said in another forum that you couldn%26#39;t find Redwoods unless you went as far south as Eureka. Jedediah would seem perfect.
In regards to budget, some days we can %26#39;splurge%26#39; for $150, but ideally $100-$125 is better for us. With this trip primarily being a driving tour, we obviously are not spending alot of hotel time. Oceanfront/view would be nice, but is not mandatory.
No comments:
Post a Comment