Oregon: Astoria

We left Cannon Beach and headed north on US 101.

We stopped to visit the Peter Iredale, a shipwreck that has been slowly rusting away since 1906 in Fort Stevens State Park.

Also in Fort Stevens State Park is the top left corner of Oregon! For some reason I found this to be very exciting. I suppose the more exciting part is the mouth of the Columbia River, where Lewis and Clark's expedition finally reached the Pacific Ocean.

It was a short drive from the park to Astoria. Since it's been about five years since I've seen The Goonies, I navigated us to the big tall thing on top of the hill: The Astoria Column.

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

After walking to the top, realizing that I don't like heights and Jesse doesn't like small enclosed spaces, and almost calmly walking back down, we sat on the hill and enjoyed the view in a less stressful manner.

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

Our wistful gazing and selfie-taking was only briefly interrupted by two Norwegians - one with a longboard and the other with his foot in a fresh cast - asking me to take their photo. Jesse also took this time to flop on the ground to take pictures of flowers.

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

After siting for a good long while, completely at a loss for what to do, I consulted Yelp. Even though I have never ordered fish and chips for myself, I couldn't pass up an almost perfect rating. We headed down the mountain, into Astoria.

We were not disappointed. Bowpicker serves fish and chips and that's it. And boy do they do it right!

After lunch we wandered around Astoria before heading east, back to the city.

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

But wait! We had one final adventure before returning to the Portland area. All day we had been seeing these tiny, drive-up espresso stands. Whaaaaat?

We couldn't resist.

It was fantastic. 

Next up: We conquer Mt. Hood and drink more coffee

Fly fishing

I learned how to fly fish this weekend! And I caught a fish, too!

I can cross that one off the list.

Oregon: Cannon Beach

I grew up going to the Jersey shore. I still go there occasionally, especially now that I live a half hour (sans traffic) from Sandy Hook. In New Jersey, beaches are sandy, full of people, and bordered by murky water. Oh, and you have to pay to access them.

I knew I wanted to visit the coast while in Oregon. On a whim, I looked at some of the photos that pop up when you click on names in Google Maps. 

Those are some interesting rocks you've got there, Cannon Beach.

Oh, and Astoria? Like The Goonies? Yes please.

I planned a route that would allow us to see as much of the state as possible.

We woke up early (thanks, time zones!) and drove west through forests of towering pines. Jesse mentioned the size of the trees about every 15 minutes. Seriously, the trees are huge!

As we headed south on US 101, we caught a glimpse of a behemoth rock poking out above the trees. We assumed we were close to our destination.

The first thing we did upon arriving in the tiny coastal town of Cannon Beach was get lost. 

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

Once we found the free(!) parking lot in the center of town, we got some excellent coffee.

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

We then had to ask a nice lady in a shop how to get to the beach. Amazingly, it was at the end of the street, through a housing complex. And it was free. Apparently all beaches in Oregon are public.

The morning started out foggy, but slowly the sun pried its way into the day.

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

Photo by Jesse Stratowski 

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

Photo by Jesse Stratowski 

Photo by Jesse Stratowski

We were completely blown away by our trip to the beach. Starfish, environmental education, and massive geological structures, all before lunch!

Next up: our afternoon in Astoria (with a few stops in between)

Oregon: Portland

Jesse and I just returned from a fantastic trip to Oregon. Thanks to the hospitality of my cousin Patrick and his family, we were able to explore Portland, Mt. Hood, Bend, and the coast.

Mt. Hood

The first place we visited upon arrival was Multnomah Falls, just up the Columbia River from the mouth of the Willamette River.

We explored the city. The Portland Saturday Market runs both Saturday and Sunday. Jesse and I picked up some art and tee-shirts.

The smallest public park in the world.

On our last day we were able to meet up with a friend from Rutgers, Chris. Together, we explored Next Adventure, a store that sells used outdoors gear. We were in heaven.

Patrick introduced us to the International Rose Test Garden. It was a beautiful space to experience. As one would expect, the area had a strong, but not overwhelming floral scent. And the variety of shapes, sizes, and colors were spectacular.

Coffee was a theme for the week. We tried as many coffee shops as possible. Stumptown was pretty good, but definitely not the best coffee we had in Portland. The best coffee was actually at Cathedral Coffee, near the St. John's Bridge.

Cathedral Coffee was also a beautiful space.

They even put extra effort into the soup here.

Our last stop before we left the city was Cathedral Park.

It was very hard to leave.

 Next up: Our adventure to the coast of Oregon.


Have you ever been to Portland? What was your favorite part?