Originally Posted by
fly_yag
Looking for suggestions on how best to spend a long weekend in and around PDX at the end of October. My girlfriend and I will be arriving on a Thursday morning and leaving Sunday afternoon and for the moment our schedule is wide-open. We've got accommodations booked at the Nines but are open to changing if there are better options.
A few things we've been thinking about:
- We're hoping to taste some delicious craft beer. Any recommendations for specific breweries to visit?
- Any good restaurant recommendations? Looking for interesting food but not necessarily high-end.
- Given our limited time is it worthwhile to head to the coast for a day?
- How feasible is it to do wine tours during that time of year? Obviously I'd like to avoid drinking and driving so any recommendations for tour companies would also be appreciated.
- Is renting a car worthwhile or is most everything within the city walkable?
Let me make a suggestion that might address several of your aims in one place.
Have a look at
McMenamin's Edgefield as a place to stay. Here's why:
The Edgefield is located in Troutdale, one of Portland's eastern suburbs, around a 15-min. drive from PDX airport. You can get into downtown Portland in around 20-25 min.
But in 20 min. in the opposite direction, you're in the Columbia Gorge, one of the most scenic and varied regions in the west, absolutely splendid at the time of year you're visiting. The Gorge has stunning scenery - vista points, numerous waterfalls (probably quite spectacular with autumn rain) and one of the most beautiful roads (the Historic Gorge Highway) in North America.
At the eastern edge of the main Gorge (around an hour east of Troutdale) is the town of Hood River, one of the main centers of the
craft brewing business. Hood River is a pretty little town, center for windsurfing, with numerous brewpubs, great restaurants, and a couple of wineries.
South from Hood River is the Hood River Valley, full of orchards and vineyards - stunning in the fall - leading up to Mount Hood looming over the valley. An hour up the valley from Hood River is Timberline Lodge, the iconic 1930s mountain lodge on the side of the volcano.
Mt. Hood from the Hood River Valley -
Another hour (or a bit less) east from Hood River and you're at Maryhill, another up-and-coming vineyard area, also home to the fun
Maryhill Museum, a "replica" of Stonehenge, and reliably sunny weather out in the sagebrush.
McMenamin's has an on-site brewery (I really like their beers) as well as a winery (surprisingly good wines) and a distillery, numerous fun (some tiny) bars and pubs sprinkled around the grounds, good food in several restaurants, a mini golf course, a movie theater, spa, and wonderful funky art throughout the grounds.
Think about a couple of your days in the Gorge area and one in the city - hit the many food trucks, prowl restaurants and pubs in the Pearl District, along Hawthorn or NW 23rd Street, eat doughnuts at Voodoo...
Don't bother with the coast IMO - I find the drive boring and the weather in October is more likely than not to be wet. Plan a longer visit when you can do both the coast and the Willamette Valley vineyards.