I will fly into Portland mid September and arrive early/mid afternoon. I want to head towards the Columbia River Gorge, and include Bend, Crater Lake, and Silver Falls State Park, possibly include Mount St. Helens. Arriving mid-day, where should I stay the first night, and what should I try to see that first day and a half? I originally thought I%26#39;d plan a day or so driving up the coast, but now think that may be much. Having driven the Pacific Coast Hwy in CA, is the OR coast much different? Any suggestions on an itinerary would be appreciated. I enjoy hiking.
Suggested ';circle'; tour
How long do you plan to spend on this trip?
If you haven%26#39;t been to Portland before, I%26#39;d spend that first afternoon and night in Portland. On day 2, I%26#39;d head up to Mt. St. Helens. If you leave right after an early breakfast you can visit one or two of the visitor centers and get to the Johnston Observatory and back to Portland by late afternoon. But, instead of going staying the second night in Portland, you%26#39;ll have time to swing east to the Gorge, see Multomah Falls, and perhaps spend the night in Hood River.
Continue on day 3 along the Gorge and turn south on #97. If you have time, your next stop would be Bend, but if you%26#39;re short on time, you can go straight through to Crater Lake. That would get you pretty late in the day, however, and create a problem unless you have a room reserved at the lodge.
Whether you then cut across to the coast and went north, or simply returned north on I-5 would also depend on how much time you have. Going up I-5 will take you to Silver Falls State Park (about 25 miles east of Salem).
Comparing the Oregon Coast to California%26#39;s PCH would depend on what portions of each you would be comparing. Hwy 1 from Morro Bay to Monterrey is certainly magnificent; however, there are portions of the Oregon coast that can compare...with much more comfortable driving conditions.
Let us know how much time you can spend and we can get more specific in our recommendations.
Suggested ';circle'; tour
Sorry - I left out the most important thing - my time! I will arrive on Saturday afternoon and leave Sunday afternoon of the following weekend. Thanks.
If you haven%26#39;t seen it, it%26#39;s hard not to include at least part of the coast in an itinerary. And, since the coast is best driven north to south, I%26#39;d suggest a ';circle'; tour something like: Portland - Silver Falls - Newport - Crescent City, CA - Crater Lake - Bend - Columbia River Gorge - Portland. This route takes you along what many think is the most scenic part of the coast, and includes a drive through Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. You could tack St. Helens on either the front or back end, since it%26#39;s best done as a day trip from Portland.
Overnights schedule could look something like:
Saturday - Portland
Sunday - Newport
Monday - Bandon
Tuesday - Crater Lake
Wednesday %26amp; Thursday - Bend
Friday %26amp; Saturday - Portland.
OK. Arrive PDX Saturday and leave following Sunday.
Let%26#39;s expand on my previous suggestions:
Saturday: spend that first afternoon and night in Portland.
Sunday: On day 2, head up to Mt. St. Helens. If you leave right after an early breakfast you can visit one or two of the visitor centers and get to the Johnston Observatory and back to Portland by late afternoon. But, instead of going staying the second night in Portland, you%26#39;ll have time to swing east to the Gorge, see Multomah Falls, and perhaps spend the night in Hood River.
Monday: Continue along the Gorge and turn south on #97 to Bend. Spend Monday %26amp; Tuesday nights here. See High Desert Museum and other attractions.
Wednesday: Leave early and drive to Crater Lake; and after seeing lake and having lunch at lodge, go back out through north entrance to Diamond Lake and take #138 along Umpqua River to Roseburg (beautiful scenery and waterfalls, including Toketee Falls). Spend night in Roseburg...or at Steamboat Inn, if possible).
Thursday: Continue on #138 along Umpqua River to Reedsport and turn north on coast highway to Yachats.
Take time for seeing the dunes, Heceta Head Lighthouse, Cape Perpetua.
Friday: Spend some time in Newport, continue north to Lincoln City and go east on #18 and #22 to Salem (or turn sooner at Newport on #20 to Corvallis/Albany and up I-5 to Salem).
Saturday: Hike Silver Springs State Park and continue north to Portland for the night...leaving you in place for comfortably catching your Sunday flight.
I think this ';circle tour'; includes the locations you wanted and allows enough flexibility to enjoy a lot of the activities you mentioned.
continue on to If you have time, your next stop would be Bend, but if you%26#39;re short on time, you can go straight through to Crater Lake. That would get you pretty late in the day, however, and create a problem unless you have a room reserved at the lodge.
Whether you then cut across to the coast and went north, or simply returned north on I-5 would also depend on how much time you have. Going up I-5 will take you to Silver Falls State Park (about 25 miles east of Salem).
Just saw Mistletoe%26#39;s suggestion...posted as I was drafting my response. If you do want to do the coast north to south, I think you could easily reverse the itinerary I recommended, going down the coast and up through Bend. A major difference in our suggestions is that I included Mt. St. Helens as a day trip and Mistletoe chose the redwoods. I think you could do either, but not both, in the time you have (allowing for opportunities for hiking and exploring).
Big Sur or Morro bay to Carmel is only coast that can compare to oreg coast in this country. And i think Oreg coast has more variety. Has big bays, large sand dunes, It has been several years since we have been on Big Sur, but we go in a couple of weeks so will get an update.
I would at least do Depoe Bay to Florence. Though Port Orford to Brookings quite good too.
Did you see any big trees when you were in Cal before? I mean Redwoods or sequoias. If so Mt St Helens may be better choice. But if not Redwoods would be worth visit.
Personally I would lean to Mt St Helens pretty impressive to see that recent volcano up close.
Great ideas. Thanks. I had tentatively planned to fly into PDX headed towards the Gorge, but sounds like I should head towards the coast and do the reverse from what I had planned. And since it sounds like Mount St. Helens, Crater Lake, and Silver Falls State Park are all doable in a day each, perhaps I can indeed do everything I want, plus add a day driving along the coast. Nothing against the Redwoods, but I would rather see Mount St. Helens if given the choice. I did see some Redwoods in CA, but didn%26#39;t actually go to the National Park(s). Just not sure what to do that first partial day I arrive at PDX. Any suggestions? Go ahead and drive towards either the coast or the Gorge and stay the first night there?
Or if staying in Portland, what to do that first partial day? Right now, I%26#39;m leaning towards NOT staying in Portland that first night.
A comment about the Redwoods. If you are referring to having seen the John Muir Woods in the Bay area, they don%26#39;t hold a candle, IMO, to the redwoods in N. California. But, I%26#39;m not suggesting you see them this trip.
You have been given good advice about your route and will have a wonderful trip.
It would make sense, if you%26#39;re planning to drive any of the coast, that Silver Falls would be your first stop out of Portland. Leave Portland Sunday morning, spend most of the day in the Park, and you could still make Newport that evening. Next day, drive the coast as far as Reedsport before cutting inland on hwy 38/138 up to Crater Lake.
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