Learn me: Vacation in Washinton/Oregon

Hey Everyone,

Thanks for all of the suggestions.  We're gonna look at it all and come up with a plan.  This is all great info.

-Mike

If you're hitting Seattle, I believe the Space Needle renovation is done or almost done... Now with glass floors.

When you visit Mt St Helens, set aside a few hours to go to the south side and go into Ape Caves. It's a lava tube that is open for the public. It'll be cool for boys in the age group yours are in. Rock scrambling, absolute darkness, etc. http://www.mountsthelens.com/ape-caves.html

A ferry ride across Puget Sound is a great way to take a break and get to/from the Olympic Peninsula at the same time. 

We spent 1 1/2 weeks in Olympic National Park and still didn't see all the easy stuff, much less the longer hikes. Definitely worth it. Cape Flattery is at the Northwest tip of the Olympic Peninsula and is the Northwestern most point in the US. Neat hike out to the cliffs and awesome views at the cliffs.

Also in Olympic National park, Hoh Rain Forest and Hurricane Ridge are must-sees.

Wildlife Safari in Winston, OR is a fun diversion barely off I-5 in the middle of Oregon. It is a drive-through exotic animal park with some other activities too.

Amazing lighthouses all along the OR coast. Each one is very different and tells a different story.

I'm not sure what direction you are coming from, but if you are entering Oregon from the East, look for Oregon trail stuff along the way. Three River Crossing State Park (Idaho) near the ID/OR border has sites nearby with original Oregon Trail wagon ruts. Also, there is a great Oregon Trail Museum in Baker, OR.

Whew! I could go on and on...WA/OR is a great place to vacation (but, please, folks, don't move here...(kidding))

You are going to have an AWESOME trip.

If you find yourself northeast of Seattle with the time and inclination, a very cool way to see the area is by hot air balloon. I admit to some bias in this regard since that's what I do for a living but it's still true. I'd invent some manner of GRM-fellow-crazy-gearhead discount. PM me if there's any interest.

Jay_W said:

If you find yourself northeast of Seattle with the time and inclination, a very cool way to see the area is by hot air balloon. I admit to some bias in this regard since that's what I do for a living but it's still true. I'd invent some manner of GRM-fellow-crazy-gearhead discount. PM me if there's any interest.

That's awesome, and is a great addition to the list. Whenever we see the balloons out we talk about what a great ride it must be, and how we need to do it one of these days. Even as locals, it's funny how many other amazing things listed in this thread are still on our to-do list too.

This may not be all that unique to NW, but you can experience in and around Seattle area if you want and I think young boys would enjoy it...

Crab Pot restaurant (& others) will dump a big bucket of food on the middle of the table, hand you hammers, pliers, butter, beer and napkins and you just go after it.

Jay_W said:

If you find yourself northeast of Seattle with the time and inclination, a very cool way to see the area is by hot air balloon. I admit to some bias in this regard since that's what I do for a living but it's still true. I'd invent some manner of GRM-fellow-crazy-gearhead discount. PM me if there's any interest.

oh man, when i was young my grandmother would take my brother and i to a park near Kent and we'd watch all the balloons launch.  We used to see them all the time between Puyallup and Federal Way (not so much anymore though).

Also kind of cool to see is the Freemont troll and the statue of Lennin (also in freemont).  The statue kind of has a cool story to it.

Plenty of microbreweries in the area as well most have their own gimmick, all have at least one good beer.  Sit outside and try a few.

Oh, and recreational weed is legal if you're interested in such things. 

PNW is my favorite vacation. Here's how we did it:

1) Camp or rent a place near Crater Lake - go there if it's clear, if cloudy go to Redwoods first

2) Redwoods or Crater Lake

3) North to Portland. Powell's. Beer. Food. Festivals. Japanese Gardens. Rent a bicycle.

4) North to Columbia River Gorge. Multnomah Falls. If you have half a day, do the somewhat strenuous 6 mile hike up Eagle Creek. Seriously, Tunnel Falls is well worth it.

5) Northeast to Rainier and St. Helens if it's clear. Just Rainier if it's cloudy or raining. Highly recommend the Skyline Trail if you're only going to do one hike. It's got everything.

6) Seattle. Seafood, coffee, oysters. Best Fish and Chips you'll ever have.

7) Take the Ferry to Olympic. Spend as much time as you can there. Make sure to at least make it to the Hoh trail and Sol Duc Falls.

Things we didn't get to (Only had a week believe it or not!)

8) Glacier National Park

9) Vancouver and Victoria. We didn't make it to Victoria unfortunately.

Oh, and if you're looking for a fancy meal in Portland, I highly recommend the tasting menu at Ava Gene's. There are very few meals I've had that delighted me as much as that one. Especially the Panna Cotta. 

I traveled to the area several years ago with the first wife in a business trip for her.  We went in the early Spring which is the wrong time of the year but still had a great trip.  Flew into Seattle and traveled in the snow thru Stevens Pass to a small town on the east side of the mountains.  After she was done with her training, we then traveled across an Indian reservation into Oregon and followed the Columbia River to the coast.  The worst thing was the weather since it was so fogged in that we never saw Mt Hood, Ranier or St Helens.  Ate at restaurants in Cannon Beach and could barely see the rock formations.  However we got to do St Patrick's Day in Portland and visit with the guys at Corksport.  Well worth the effort to go but make sure you go during a better time of year.