Roadtrip through Oregon!

December 24, 2010 9:30 AM

What should I make sure to see on a short roadtrip through Oregon after xmas?

I am doing a roadtrip with my girlfriend from Eureka CA to Seattle. I dont know Oregon at all and need some places to stop/visit! I planned on doing the coast but as it is winter that could change if others have suggestions.

posted by Black_Umbrella to Travel & Transportation around Oregon (7 answers total)

Mount Hood is really beautiful. (The lodge might look familiar if you've seen Kubrick's film The Shining.) It's about an hour and a half drive from Portland in good weather.

Powell's Books in Portland

The Portland area is MeFi world headquarters, so you can just soak up the ambience :-)
posted by lukemeister at 10:01 AM on December 24, 2010

Portland is filled with delights, but for southern/southern OR here are the spots I tend to stop:

Rogue Creamery in Central Point

Abacela Winery near Roseburg (warm weather varietals grow well in southern Oregon. Mmmmm, tempranillo. )

Also, beer. More or less everywhere.

If it weren't winter, there's Crater Lake.
posted by janell at 10:16 AM on December 24, 2010

In Portland, the Japanese Garden is nice anytime of year.

If you like beer, there are a number of breweries and brewpubs around:

Bridgeport Brewing
Deschutes Brewery
Rogue
Widmer Bros.

I'm sure that I'm forgetting a few others.
posted by nickthetourist at 10:31 AM on December 24, 2010

The best breakfast anywhere (or a darned good lunch) is at Morning Glory in Ashland. Eagle Point, just east of Medford, has the oldest working water-powered mill west of the Missisippi; it's an interesting quick stop. If you're tired of sitting and want to hike, Silver Falls State Park, east of Salem, has several very large and high waterfalls. For eats in Eugene, Off the Waffle on South Willamette is awesome at any time of day.
posted by neuron at 6:48 PM on December 24, 2010

If you're on the Coast, visit Lincoln City, Tillamook, and Astoria.

Lincoln City has adorable little shops along the beach. Tillamook has a wonderful cheese factory. Astoria is very cute and has a column, plus Fort Clatsop (Lewis & Clark's winter camp in 1804) is nearby.
posted by phoebus at 10:17 PM on December 24, 2010

I've driven this route frequently. In the winter I've experienced flooding on the coastal route and I've had to put on chains for the inland route, so either one can be a pain weather-wise. I'd stay on the Coast as long as you can, and be prepared for it to take a long time to get back to I-5 from there.

If you end up on I-5, make a stop for the wonderful fish ladder at the Umpqua River near Winchester. map
posted by olecranon at 9:26 AM on December 25, 2010

Astoria also has several film locations including the Goonies and Kindergarten Cop. There Oregon Film Museum located in the jail used in The Goonies.

I'll second the Tillamook cheese factory.
posted by vagabond at 4:19 PM on December 26, 2010