Explorer Sue • Your Guide to the Pacific Northwest - Part 10

Crater Lake National Park

Things to Do in Crater Lake National Park

Guides

Make no bones about it…Crater Lake, Oregon is a magical place. It’s mysterious, it’s gorgeous, it’s heart-stopping. We’ve all seen pictures of it, but unless you’re there to witness it in person, you have no idea. Really. The first time I laid eyes on her over ten years ago, my breath caught in my throat. “Woooowwww,” was the only thing I could utter for a full minute. And even the second time just recently, I got the privilege of being a “first time witness” because the second time, I brought my husband with me and it was his first time. So I got to experience another “first time” through his eyes. We approached the Lake from the north side entrance to Crater Lake National Park (the only National park in Oregon) and parked at the first viewpoint. You have to climb up a small hill to look over the edge…

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Mount Rainier National Park, Washington State

Guides

You’ve seen this decade volcano from the plane, or from a high rise in Seattle on a clear day, or driving down I-5, and you’ve always wondered to yourself, “What is it like on the ground standing the foot of this gorgeous behemoth?” Well, let me tell you. A Jewel of a Mountain If one was to compare Mt. Rainier vs. Mt. Hood, well…I’m not sure a fair comparison is in order. Both rise from the low clouds and give you that ‘come hither’ look on a clear day. Both are iconic landmarks of the Pacific Northwest, but that’s pretty much where the similarities end. Dare I say, however, even though I’m from Oregon… Mount Rainier would have to win out. But only barely. I mean, just look at this. As far as hiking is concerned, I would definitely recommend Mt. Rainier. I don’t know, maybe it’s because Mount Rainier…

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Portland Flea Markets

Guides

A great way to soak up the essence of a city, talk with locals, and grab a bargain or two in the process is to attend a local flea market. Who doesn’t love a flea market? It’s a great way to spend an afternoon alone, or with friends. Whether you are in the mood for a nifty vintage outfit, an antique collectible, or are simply looking for that next great book to read, you’ll likely find it at a Portland flea market. Shop for buried treasure here! Why do they call them flea markets, anyway? I don’t know, seems kind of off-putting, doesn’t it? Flea markets are notoriously sporadic – many of them occur just one day a week or one day a month. Some are fleeting, they come and go, but the Portland Saturday Market has been around since the early 1970’s. Here are some flea markets in Portland that…

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Why I Love (and Hate) New Orleans

Beyond the PNW

“Y’all know what you’re havin’?” the friendly, weathered man said behind the counter. “Oh yeah, we came here all the way from Portland for an ‘All That Jazz’ “ said my husband. Well, we didn’t come to New Orleans JUST for that. We were at Verdi Mart on Royal St. around 1 am for the infamous, delectable and horribly fattening killer sandwich that gives the best NOLA po’boy a run for its money. There was a local lady standing next to us who decided to put her two cents in. “I just ordered the catfish sandwich.” I turned to her. “Yeah, is it really good?” She eyed me then eyed my better half. “That your husband?” I nodded. “Get the catfish. It’ll bring you closer together.” If that’s not a selling point, I don’t know what is! But we got the All That Jazz, anyway. Make no mistake, we’ll be…

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Driving the Oregon Coast

Informational

The whole of the Oregon Coast offers up near unlimited experiences. Explore rugged and rocky vistas, sandy beaches, and forests that practically touch the water’s edge. Lighthouses galore, quaint seaside bed and breakfasts, and world-class crabbing and fishing. The Southern Oregon Coast, in particular, is a prime playland for adventurous and curious souls. Coos Bay Once a major logging town and shipyard, it is still the largest town on the Oregon Coast. Take a walk on the boardwalk, catch a production at the historic Egyptian Theater, visit the Coos Art Museum, shop for treasure at Leaf’s Treehouse Antiques. Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area The dunes are perfect for hiking, photography, and riding dune buggies! For Dune Buggy tours, go here. If you want to explore the dunes with your own ride, go here. Cranberries of Bandon I don’t know about you, but I LOVE cranberries. I love to…

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Take the Pacific Northwest Trivia Quiz

Informational

Think you know your Pacific Northwest trivia? I’ve put together this little trivia quiz to test your knowledge and to get you thinking about your next Pacific Northwest Adventure. The tiniest park in the world resides in Portland Oregon. What’s it called? Forest Park Washington Park Peninsula Park Mills End Park In the “Twilight” novels/movie franchise, Bella and Charlie’s hometown is what tiny Washington town? Forks Prineville Port Angeles Condon The deepest lake in the U.S holds mysterious qualities due to its immense depth. What’s its name? Shasta Lake Crater Lake Diamond Lake Lost Creek Lake What city is the capital of Washington State? Salem Tacoma Olympia Spokane The most dangerous lighthouse on the west coast is… Cape Disappointment North Head Terrible Tilly Haceta Head Who/what was San Juan Island named by? A Spanish explorer A Catholic Saint The first horse brought to the island The Puerto Rican city…

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Portland Parks

Informational

The Rose City has so many wonderful parks. Portland is green (in more ways than one), and her many parks are a testament to that love of nature and sustainability. Whatever your outdoor activity, you can find a park in Portland that will accommodate you. I can’t think of another U.S. city of its size with so many parks to choose from. To list them all here would be a very long post! So I’ll give you the best. Laurelhurst Park It has a lovely pond with ducks, a trail for strolling, and a basketball court. Located Southeast Portland along SE 39th St (or Cesar Chavez to the locals) its also a wonderful place to bring your pup. Pier Park Here there is free disc golf and big trees! Located in north Portland, it’s possible to pretend (just for a moment) that you are in the Redwood Forest. While…

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Road Trip! Central Washington State

Guides

Looking for a great Washington State road trip? Sandwiched between the Cascade Mountain Range and the secluded forests of the Nez-Pierce in Idaho, lies the deserts of central Washington. The land of fragrant sagebrush and towering rock formations carved out by ancient ice ages. Some have called this the high desert, and that assumption can easily be made as the same landscape stretches up from Oregon’s high desert. This makes for incredible road trip fodder. But while Oregon boasts a true high desert territory, Washington State cannot accurately make the same claim. The elevation must be over 2,000 feet above sea level, and as the desert reaches Washington, the sea level drops to 1,000 feet and under. Nevertheless, what other state gives you desert landscapes on one side and temperate rainforests on the other? None, I tell you! It’s what makes Washington State one of the greatest in the continental…

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Quiz: How Should you Plan your Pacific Northwest Vacation?

British Columbia, Canada

Oregon, Washington and British Columbia encompass such a large area, with so many breathtaking sights, cultural experiences and outdoor activities, it can be overwhelming. If you have been here before, you have some idea of what I’m talking about. And you probably have a pretty good idea of what you want to do the next time you visit. Many people have asked me what the ‘perfect’ Pacific Northwest itinerary is. That is such a deep question. Because truthfully, there is no perfect PNW itinerary. At least not the same itinerary for everyone. It’s all about your personal tastes, time frame, and desires. I have racked my brain trying to come up with a blog post that will address this ‘perfect itinerary’ concept. I’ve concluded that it would be a VERY LONG POST. So rather than have my awesome readers sift through all of the rubble to get at what they…

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The Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Informational

The sleepy town of Ashland, southern Oregon is nestled in the land of fertile farmland and rural friendliness. You wouldn’t think that for eight months out of the year it is the central hub of amazing, world-class entertainment in the form of better-than-Broadway theatre. This ain’t your run-of-the-mill Shakespeare Festival. People from all over the world come to Ashland to experience professionally trained actors delivering productions of classic Shakespearean drama not to be found on the same scale anywhere else. From February through October, you can choose from eleven different plays, on three different stages. Among the entertainment on offer are timeless classics such as “Julius Caesar” and “Shakespeare in Love” as well as more contemporary fare. They even offer a Backstage Tour which is a separate attraction unto itself, as well as other engaging activities. OSF Home Page Tickets are thoughtfully offered for any budget, from around $30 to…

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What the Heck is Travel Roulette?

Beyond the PNW

Okay, so you’ve decided that you want to take a vacation. A good one. A few days to get away from regular life. The need burns so great in you that if you don’t leave town soon, you’ll burst. What to do? Where to go? Maybe you don’t even care where you go, you just need to get away from home. Enter Vacation Roulette This is going beyond the Pacific Northwest. Although, if you wanted to stay within the confines of Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia, knock yourself out. But the world is a bit larger than that, isn’t it? Fortunately for the spontaneous and adventurous traveler, this is not a new concept. In fact, there are several websites dedicated to the cause. What is travel roulette? Well, just what it implies. You want to travel? Cool. Spin the wheel, or globe, as the case may be. HOWEVER…it’s not as…

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Smith Rock State Park

Must Go

Smith Rock has held a mysterious fascination for me for many years. I worked for an outdoor travel clothing company that sold Smith Rock Tee Shirts before I ever knew that there was an actual Smith Rock in Oregon that inspired the name. It took me this long to finally visit one of the most breathtaking state parks in Oregon. I suppose one of the reasons I waited so long was because I figured it would have to be a several-day trip to eastern Oregon to visit one lonely park. Boy, was I wrong. If you hit the road early enough in the day from Portland, this can easily be a day trip. Or, stretch it out into a two or three-day trip…your choice. Smith Rock State Park is only a two-hour and fifty-minute drive southeast of Portland…2 ½ hours if the traffic is light. But I…

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Fossil, Oregon and the Painted Hills

Guides

Deep in the high desert of central Oregon, past the tumbling tumble weeds and hovering hawks seeking out their prey…past the fragrant sagebrush and long forgotten ghost towns…lies fossils and vibrantly painted hillsides ancient and unique to Oregon. Digging for Fossils You heard me right. Fossils…to be found in the tiny town of Fossil. No joke. That’s the name of the town. With one gas station and a whole lot of friendly characters. The day I was there they cordoned off the main drag to make way for an impromptu parade lasting about five minutes with a few cowboys on horseback and one lonely float full of school kids throwing candy to the locals lining the street. But I digress. I came here to find some fossils. Now, don’t get your hopes up. These are not dinosaur fossils. Let’s leave those to the experts, shall we? Rather, these are plant…

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The Oregon Country Fair

Must Go

A Groovy Place to Unwind Every summer, sometime in July, thousands of glorious hippies descend upon the tiny town of Veneta in west-central Oregon to pay their respects to all things groovy. The Oregon Country Fair is a 3-day festival where there is music, crafts, activities for the kids, camping, and so much more. This is a place where you can get your tie dye on, get your body painted, and just generally let your freak flag fly. Just about anything goes here. And yet it is family friendly. I can’t think of another event where the magical camaraderie is as prevalent as the OCF. Everyone is truly welcome here (whether you call yourself a hippie or not!) If you’re looking for something to do in Oregon in the middle of summer, this is the places to be. It’s no wonder that tickets and campsites fill up quickly year…

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Oregon’s Covered Bridges

Guides

The covered bridges of ages past hold a romanticism, not unlike your local childhood soda shop, or the drive-in movie theatre just outside of town. Covered bridges are a cherished piece of Americana – taking a Sunday drive through one beckons images of simpler times. The Heyday of the Covered Bridge Many of these bridges were built during the height of the great depression, throughout the 1930’s. Oregon has a plethora of covered bridges still in existence. Out of the 600 covered bridges that once stood, about fifty remain. Here is an interactive map of all of them: Covered Bridges of Oregon Website Practical Romance Back in the day, covered bridges, while very cool looking, were not only built for their glorious aesthetic – they had a practical purpose. Since bridges in the early 20th century were primarily made of wood, there had to be some way of…

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You had to stop every once in a while to just soak up the beauty.

Hiking the Narrows, Zion National Park, Utah

Beyond the PNW

The best hike of my life so far? Definitely! Certainly, the longest hike I’ve done yet, and one of the most challenging. Not so much as difficult in terms of elevation, but in the uniqueness of terrain and stamina. Much of it is wading in water, negotiating smooth rocks. As I was preparing for this hike, reading various blogs about what to bring, what time of the year is best, cautionary steps to take, I have to say… I was very skeptical about even doing this. But oh! Some of the challenges you put yourself through are also some of the most rewarding! And the best part? My family was with me: My husband, my brother and sister, and their families. We had kids with us as young as seven, and all of us hiked this gorgeous trail with little problem.None of us had done anything like this before, and…

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The Joy of Road Trips in Oregon and Washington

Guides

There’s nothing…I mean nothing more spiritually fulfilling than getting up at the crack of dawn on a summer’s day, getting in your car with a full tank of gas, and a grocery bag full of snacks. Grab a friend (or two, or three…) and hit the open road. A Pacific Northwest drive is the perfect way to get away from it all. A good road trip is where ALL things are possible; the world is your oyster and you alone are in charge of your destiny. Am I getting too philosophical? Well, that’s because road trips really do mean that much to me. Whether you are traveling to an old familiar town or exploring brand new territory with nothing but a map (okay a GPS, sheesh…) and no firm plans (those trips are the best kind!) road trips embody the American dream. In the Pacific Northwest, the possibilities…

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Things to Do in Victoria, BC with Itinerary

British Columbia, Canada

** This post was updated July 9, 2024 ** Victoria is the cuter-than-a-button, picturesque darling of British Columbia. I really love this little city – with its super-easy and affordable ferry trip from Seattle, and its walkable fun-filled streets, what’s not to love? When you’re looking for things to do in Victoria, look no further. It is also the capital of British Columbia, so there is a lot of history surrounding it, as well. Most of the attractions are centered around the waterfront/downtown area, so everything is within walking distance. It makes for a great day trip by ferry from Seattle, but to really get the full experience, plan 2-3 days here. For great hiking near Victoria BC, read my post about it. Things to Do in Victoria, BC With its close proximity to Puget Sound and the Pacific Ocean, Victoria is a great place to visit all year round,…

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City Guide to Spokane, Washington

Food & Drink

For a town that’s out in the middle of nowhere, smack dab in the high desert of eastern Washington State, Spokane is a pretty cool place. While it’s no Las Vegas by any means, it carves out its own niche with tons of family-friendly locals, stunning waterfalls in the heart of downtown (where else does THAT happen?), and a wide variety of eateries and shopping. Here is your city guide to Spokane, WA. A Rich History The name Spokane was taken from the indigenous Salishan-speaking Spokane people who first resided here. Spokane means “children of the sun.” First established as a trading post in 1810, over the coming decades, settlers slowly began trickling in. The growing settlement became a town, called Spokane Falls. Along with the mining of gold and silver found in the area, timber and farming also became the main economic draw. In 1974, Spokane held the first…

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Travel Hacks: Essential Reading

Guides

We all know that it’s getting more expensive to plan and execute a vacation. Unless you have gobs of money stashed away in the bank, it’s pretty much necessary to find some ways to save money before and during your holiday. No matter what kind of trip you’re planning – a rugged camping trip in the woods? There’s a travel hack for that. An epic road trip through ten states? Even better. A high-end city-center stay at a plush hotel? Yep, there are travel hacks for that! So what exactly IS travel hacking? It could mean lots of things: Those with decent credit can sign up for a couple of choice airline or hotel credit cards, and get a free night and/or points right off the bat. Then there are all of the apps available for download on any smartphone, with all manner of incentives for free travel stuff and…

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