Which Way to Drive-columbia River Gorge

We will be going to the Columbia River Gorge in May driving on the Oregon side and seeing Multnomah Falls, Portland Woman%26#39;s forum, etc. We are then headed to Castle Rock to see Mt. St. Helens. We are going as far as the Bonneville Dam. After the Bonneville Dam, should we drive the Oregon side or the Washington side to get to Castle Rock? Which would be faster? Thank you.

Which Way to Drive-columbia River Gorge

WA side for a change of scenery, then 295 north to Castle Rock. Faster? Perhaps, but smell the roses. It%26#39;s a very different view. This post seems to conflict with the route 99 question.

Which Way to Drive-columbia River Gorge

Yes, I wrote this one and then I thought..what if I tried that route instead of traveling back towards Portland again to go to Mt. St. Helens. So it was an after thought. Just trying to plan to see which way is the best.

Washington side has the replica of Stonehenge. OR side has the Twilight movie filming locations.

At the travel rate you%26#39;ve posted elsewhere, I don%26#39;t know if you%26#39;ll have time to stop and see either of these. Going on the OR side would be faster because it is a freeway.

The Washington side is two lane road with a slower speed limit. You will also go through a few towns which will cause you to have to slow down. Additionally, you can%26#39;t cross over at Bonneville, you would have to drive a little futher to Cascade Locks and then cross the Bridge of the Gods (toll bridge). The Oregon side is obviously interstate.

If you are heading straight over to Mt. St. Helen%26#39;s, I might just suggest going ahead and taking the Washington side to be different. I really don%26#39;t think it will make that huge of a difference in time.

The Stonehenge replica is much further east from Cascade Locks/Stevenson, so you will be missing that either way. However, you might be interested in making a stop at Beacon Rock. There is also the Pendleton Mills outlet store in Washougal if you are interested in shopping.

You could cross the river in Cascade Locks at Bridge of the Gods and take the WA side, it%26#39;s more scenic.

However, if you are in a hurry, take I-84 back to Portland and start north on I-205 to I-5.

I hope you are not planning to see the Columbia Gorge and drive up to Mt. St. Helens in the same day. That%26#39;s a minimum of 5 hours just the driving time, with no time alloted for stops. WA and OR are big states!

Suggest that you tour the Gorge and plan to spend a night around Longview/Kelso/Castle Rock, then drive to Mt. St. Helens/Johnston Ridge the next day and on to Seattle (which is apparently where you are headed from your other forums).

It really would be helpful if you would post your complete itinerary. Then we would be better informed to make some suggestions.

Good point Kitters!! That would be far too much to try and fit in to one day, unless you just plan on doing a quick drive by of everything.

I was planning to spend two hours at the Columbia Gorge, mainly seeing Women%26#39;s Forum, Vista Point, and Multnomah Falls,..starting out early in the AM. Then drive an hour and a half to Mt. St. Helens. See as much as I can of that in an hour or an hour and a half to spend there. Then drive 2 hours to Seattle and spend a couple hours in the city. So yes, I know people think I am nuts, but I am just seeing the bare minimum and not seeing it in a relaxed fashion...jst basically an overview of everything. It is all the time that I have. I appreciate all the help that everyone has given me.

Okay, well, then if that is the case, and you are just wanting to do this as a quick drive by then I would suggest you skip most of the historic highway. Take I-84 to the Corbett exit (I think exit 22), this will take you up to Vista House, skipping the less scenic first half of the highway. Then head further towards Multnomah Falls, this will take you past the major waterfalls. I would probably skip going all the way to Bonneville Dam if you have limited time. When the historic highway ends just past Ainsworth State Park, just hop right back on I-84 and go east.

As far as Mt. St. Helen%26#39;s goes, even rushing, I still don%26#39;t think you will have enough time to make it all the way to Johnston Ridge if you make any other stops along the way. Personally, I think that maybe your best bet is to skip Silver Lake Visitor Center (the closest to the freeway), and maybe go as far as Coldwater Ridge. Of course, if the weather is not cooperating, I would skip Mt. St. Helens entirely, because you will drive all the way up there and see nothing.

Thank you. Your information has been very helpful. I thought that I probably couldn%26#39;t get all the way to Johnson Ridge Observatory. But I thought that seeing something is better than seeing nothing. I even thought of going in to the east side of Mt. St. Helens on Hwy 99 which would save the time of driving back to Portland. I wasn%26#39;t sure if the Bonneville Dam was a must see or something that was okay to skip. I know that Multnomah Falls is a must see. I wish that I had a couple more days, but unfortunately this is all that I have.

I appreciate your patience with me.

Sorry, I have to correct my earlier post. I said hop back on I-84 and go east, I obviously meant west.

With such limited time, I wouldn%26#39;t consider Bonneville Dam a must see. If you decide to skip Mt. St. Helens, then you might try to squeeze some time in for it.