Portland Geography

The Portland airport (PDX) is Northwest of the city.  The city of Portland is divided into four quadrants with the Willamette River creating the boundary between East and West and Burnside St. creating the boundary between North and South.  So, if you are North of Burnside St and East of the river you and in Northeast Portland, go figure.  It is about a 90 minute westerly drive from Portland to the ocean (Cannon Beach is a great beach town to visit).  Mt. St. Helens is about 90 minutes North (by Northeast) of Portland while Seattle is a good 3.5 hour drive North of Portland.  If you drive East from Portland (and East of the airport) you can visit the Colombia River Gorge (lots of good hiking), Mt. Hood (hiking and skiing) and also the city of Hood River (great place to windsurf).  If you drive South of there are a lot more mountains (to the East) and coastline (to the West) until you get to California which has recently been turned into one giant prison as per the new governor.

Things to See and Do in Portland  

Powell's City of Books  (1005 W Burnside St  (cross Oak))

Huge, huge bookstore with lots of rare and used titles.  It is easy to get lost in this place but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Portland Saturday Market  (108 W Burnside St, next to the river)

Every Saturday and Sunday (why don’t they call it the weekend market?)

Handmade clothing, various art, tasty foods. 

Oregon Brewers Festival

July 23-25^th on the west-side waterfront, an opportunity to taste some of the nations best beers.  We prefer you didn’t spend too much time here on the 24^th……

Oregon Zoo and Washington Park

A good zoo with lots of other fun and scenic things to do nearby in Washington Park.

The fastest and best way to get to the Zoo is to take the light-rail (also called MAX).  Catch the train on SW Morrison St. (direction Hillsboro/Beaverton), making sure to buy a ticket first.  It is a quick ride to the Washington Park/Zoo Station which is 260ft underground (2^nd deepest in the world).  When you exit the elevator you can enter the Zoo or catch the Washington Park Shuttle which runs every 15 minutes from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.  Inside the Zoo there is a 35 minute round-trip train ride through Washington Park which has some great scenery.  You can get out at the Rose Test Garden which has great views of Mt. Hood in addition to hundred of Rose species.

The Washington Park Shuttle will also take you to the Rose Test Garden.  The Japanese Garden is within walking distance to the Rose Garden and is quite picturesque and peaceful.  Within walking distance to the Zoo, but a bit uphill, is the Hoyt Arboretum.  This is a great place to go for a walk through hundreds of different tree species.

Places to Eat in Portland    (Northwest and Northeast Portland, see our map)

BridgePort Brew Pub (1313 NW Marshall St)

Great beer and pizza by the slice, some outdoor seating.

Saucebox – (214 SW Broadway (503) 241-3393)

Asian fusion food and nice bar filled with well-dressed patrons.  We really like the Javanese Salmon.

Higgins Restaurant and Bar (1239 SW Broadway, Cross: SW Jefferson Street (503) 222-9070))

Highly rated Northwest cuisine in elegant setting.

Papa Haydn (701 NW 23rd Ave, Cross: Irving St)

Tons of tasty desserts to choose from in the heart of the 23^rd Ave shopping area.  They serve food as well.

New York City Sub Shop  (725 SW Alder St (between 7^th and 8^th))

Tasty cheese steak subs, make sure to get them with the pickled peppers.

Typhoon! (2310 NW Everett St Cross: NW 23rd Avenue)

One of many good Thai restaurants in Portland. 

Typhoon! on Broadway (410 SW Broadway)

Sister restaurant to the one in NW.

Portland City Grill (111 SW 5th Ave) (503) 450-0030 

On the 30th floor of the Unico US Bank Tower, a great place to get a drink and take in the remarkable views of the city.  They often have some live jazz also.  We haven’t eaten there since they changed ownership but they get good ratings.

Ruth's Chris Steak House (309 SW 3rd Ave (503) 221-4518) 

Mmmmmm, steak.  Not cheap but maybe the best steak you’ll ever have.

Jake's Grill (611 SW 10th Ave (503) 220-1850)

Well-known, classy, “turn-of-the-20^th-century-look” Portland Restaurant.  Excellent steak and seafood.

Jake's Famous Crawfish (401 SW 12th Ave (503) 226-1419)

Jake’s Grill sister restaurant has excellent seafood.

Wildwood Restaurant & Bar (1221 NW 21st Ave: (503) 248-9663)

The menu changes with the seasons but is always first class.

Places to Eat in Portland  (East Portland)

Taqueria Nueve (28 NE 28TH Ave, they don’t take reservations)

Great Mexican food in a festive setting, we really like the ceviche and wild-boar tacos.

Le Bistro Montage (301 SE Morrison St, Cross: SE Third Avenue)

Not easy to find (it is under the Morrison Bridge), this place has tasty cajun-inspired food.  Montage can be very loud but a lot of fun (try an oyster shooter) if you are in the right frame of mind.  They stay open very late and only take cash.

Rimsky-Korsakoffee House  (707 SE 12TH Ave (cross street Morrison))

A great place for dessert and late-night coffee in a Victorian house.  They often have a musician of some-sort adding ambiance; make sure to check out the creatively decorated bathrooms.

Hiking One of the things that we love about living in Portland is the natural beauty in the surrounding area.  Here are some (give us a call is you need more) of our recommended hikes and scenic driving stops:

Multnomah Falls (in the Colombia Gorge, ~40 minutes from downtown)

A 560ft waterfall right off the highway!

Basics:  A short walk from the parking lot to one of Oregon’s most famous sites.

Directions:  From Portland drive 31 miles east on Interstate 84 to exit 31 (on left side of highway).  Follow the crowds to the large falls and don’t forget your camera.  If you like going up hill, you can follow a paved trail quite a way up to the top of the falls and even farther along to other waterfalls.

Horsetail and Triple Falls  (in the Colombia Gorge, ~45 minutes from downtown)

Waterfalls, beautiful scenery and easy access from the highway make this a great choice.

Basics: ~3miles/2-hours (~5 miles/3-hours if you go to Triple Falls).  Elevation gain ~600 feet.

Directions:  From Portland drive 35 miles east on Interstate 84 to exit 35 (Ainsworth State Park), then drive 1.5 miles west on the Columbia River Scenic Highway to the Horsetail Falls Trailhead parking area.  Note, Multnomah Falls is on the way (exit 31 on the left side of I84).

From the parking lot, follow the trail up a short distance up besides Horsetail Falls and take a right on Ponytail Falls Trail.  The beginning part has a lot of uphill but you get rewarded with walking directly behind Ponytail Falls and then later crossing a bridge over Oneonta Gorge.  You will later reach a fork, if you go left it will take you up to Triple Falls (very nice), or you can go right to make for a shorter trip (this sends you back down to the road).  When you reach the road go right and walk along the road less than a half a mile back to your car.

Latourell Falls (in the Columbia Gorge)

Another great hike in the Gorge.

Basics: ~2miles/1.5-hours.  Elevation gain ~650 feet.

Directions:  From Portland drive 28 miles east on Interstate 84 to exit 28 (Bridal Veil), then drive 3 miles west on the Columbia River Scenic Highway to the parking lot on the left.  The beginning of this hike is steep but the trail is smooth and well maintained.  Early on you get to a nice viewpoint of Latourell Falls (250 ft), eventually you cross the creek to the west side of the Falls and return back down to complete the loop.

Tom Dick and Harry Mountain (near Mt. Hood, ~70 minutes from downtown)

Awesome mountain views (on a clear day) and a beautiful alpine lake. 

Basics: ~6miles/4-hours (about half that if you turn around at the lake).  Elevation gain ~1500 feet.

Directions:  You need a Northwest Forest Service parking day pass that you can pick up on the way at stores in the towns of Zigzag or Rhododendron.  From Portland drive on U.S. 26 east (not to be confused with the highway 26 that is west of Portland) to the parking lot on the right side of the road between mileposts 51 and 52 (the parking lot is never empty and is along a curve).  This is a scenic and steady climb up to Mirror Lake which has great views of Mt. Hood.  There is a trail that goes around the lake and there are good places for lunch.  If you want to double you workout catch the trail on the west end of the lake up to Tom, Dick and Harry Mountain where you might be able to see many of the cascade peaks of Oregon and Washington.  Return the way you came.  Calamity Jane’s in Sandy has good burgers if you are looking to refuel on the way back to Portland.

Timberline Lodge (on Mt. Hood, ~80 minutes from downtown)

Excellent views from 6000ft at a beautiful and historic lodge. 

Basics:  Endless trails leave from the lodge or just a nice place to get lunch at the lodge.