Leaving Madras we drove north to the southern bank of the mighty Columbia River, and followed the scenic route along the gorge and parts of historic route 30 with its many beautiful waterfalls. En route we stopped at the
Columbia Gorge Discover Center near Dalles, a multimedia and interactive museum with many fascinating exhibits where we learnt so much about the flora, fauna, geology and eleven thousand year old history and culture of this rich and diverse area.
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| View of Columbia River |
As we approached Portland we stopped at the Bonneville Fish Hatchery on the banks of the Columbia river, built in 1909 and responsible for raising and releasing nearly ten million fish each year, the majority of them Chinook Salmon. They also have Rainbow Trout and Coho but their biggest attraction is Herman the Sturgeon, a ten foot long, 420 lb, seventy year old male White Sturgeon, who is quite spectacular to see in the viewing center which is dedicated to conservation of this pre-historic fish species.
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| Sherman the Sturgeon at Bonneville Fish Hatchery |
Just before arriving in Portland, we drove up
Larch Mountain and hiked to Sherrad point which normally has a stunning 360 degree panoramic view of Mounts Hood, Adams, Jefferson, Ranier and St Helens. Unfortunately for us the abundance of forest wild fires, combined with a lack of rain and smog pollution have left a brown haze high in the air and we only saw Mount Hood, the closest at only 22 miles away, however it would be a stunning view otherwise. Picture below is not ours, (we pilfered it from another blog) but this is what it should look like from this point on a clear day.
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| Panorama from Sherrard Point |
And so finally into Portland. We are staying outside the city near Gresham at a Super 8 Motel, but the transport links here are fantastic and today we rode the MAX Lightrail link straight into the city, fantastic value at just $5 (£3.50) per person for a day ticket that is valid on all trains, tram and buses.
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| Voodoo Doughnuts |
Having located the tourist info at Pioneer Square we soon joined a free walking tour at 11 am with our host Eric, who gave us a fantastic guided tour for over two hours with rich descriptions of this city, from its origins to present day, and highlighting many landmarks and places of historical significance along the way. We quickly found that Portland is a very interesting city, a little weird but very friendly, though with jobs scarce people have had to diversify. As a result there are over seven hundred food carts to eat from, as well as plenty of restaurants and perhaps most famously Voodoo Doughnuts, offering over one hundred different doughnuts,
most which have unusual or eclectic ingredients or shapes.
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| View from the the Ariel Tramway |
Putting our day pass to good use we hopped on a streetcar and went to the South Waterfront district to ride the ariel tramway. It's actually one of only two commuter tramways in the USA, and it leads to the Oregon Health and Science University Campus, but it also gives tourists a great view over the city and downtown Portland.
Returning on the streetcar to the heart of the city, we browsed the multitude of shops and also stopped for a drink and watch the world go by in this quirky but fun and relaxed city. We've only had one full day here but its been a great insight and we highly recommend anyone in this area to spend some time in Portland. The weather has been good to us, hot and sunny, which we are told is unusual - if you stay here for five days or more and it hasn't rained, you haven't experienced Portland. Too bad we are moving on tomorrow.
On returning to the motel tonight we've just had some great news by email about another fantastic house and pet sit with a gorgeous looking Australian Shepherd dog called Smokey but we'll let you know more about that in a later post, so please watch this space.
