Portland Portland Attractions
Blind Pilot - Portland’s next breakout indie band?
Starting in mid July, I started hearing a new song on the ultra-influential KCRW.com that just floored me, and by about the third or fourth time I’d heard it I could tell this was not only one of my own favorite songs of the moment, but the same could be said for the on-air staff at KCRW, who famously “hand-pick” all their music. The haunting verse, rather than the chorus, has been running through my head off and on since the first time I heard it. KCRW rarely plays any song more than once a day, so when you start hearing the same song on multiple shows, it really stands out for those of us who listen consistently.
On August 1st I heard this song, called “One Red Thread” on KCRW.com again, and I finally bothered to find out about the artist. Were they from England, or Brooklyn, or Los Angeles, or Australia? A couple clicks into my search I discovered Blind Pilot was indeed from Portland, Oregon, and they actually had a show scheduled that evening in a basement lounge at Portland State University. I was stunned that the artists behind this song that had hypnotized me for weeks were playing a show within walking distance of me in only a few hours, with an admission cost of a whopping $5.
Date: August 2nd, 2008 |
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Portland Eastbank Esplanade
It used to be that people wanting a scenic and safe place to run, walk or bike along the Willamette River were limited to Waterfront Park on the west side of the river. In 2001, however, that changed with the dedication of the Eastbank Esplanade along the eastern side of the Willamette.
The Eastbank Esplanade stretches for 1.5 miles from the Hawthorne to the Steel Bridge, and includes some parts which are anchored to the ground and some parts which are floating on the river itself. It not only runs alongside the Willamette but also …
Date: February 18th, 2008 |
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Oaks Amusement Park
When you think of Portland, chances are good that you don’t automatically think of amusement parks. Portland does, however, have its own little amusement park on the east side of the Willamette River, and Oaks Park has been serving up family fun since 1905.
Oaks Amusement Park covers 44 acres, so it’s small by most amusement park standards, and it’s one of the oldest in the United States. The park includes many of the kinds of rides you’d expect in an amusement park, like a roller coaster, bumper cars and ferris wheel, as well as a big wooden roller skating rink that’s open year-round. At the center of the roller rink is a big pipe organ, adding to the nostalgic feel, although the organist is not at the keys all the time. Outside the roller skating rink, the park operates on weekends only during the spring and into the early autumn, and almost daily during the summer.
Date: January 21st, 2008 |
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Portland International Rose Test Garden
Portland is known as the Rose City for a reason - the climate is ideal for cultivating roses. As if to prove this, the city is home to the International Rose Test Garden which is part of Washington Park. It’s the “oldest continuously operating public rose test garden in the United States” (so says Wikipedia), and has been in operation since 1917. All told, the garden features more than 6,800 rose bushes representing nearly 560 varieties of roses.
Within the International Rose Test Garden are several smaller gardens, including the Shakespeare Garden and the Miniature Rose Test Garden. The Shakespeare Garden, built in 1945, was originally intended to contain only those trees, flowers and other plants which appear in Shakespeare’s plays, but now contains roses named after the characters in his plays as well. The Miniature Rose Test Garden was added in 1975 and is a testing ground for varieties of miniature roses. It’s one of only six such gardens in the United States.
Date: December 24th, 2007 |
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Portland Notes: Mar. 16, 2007
Make sure you are wearing green tomorrow as you head out to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day Portland style. The Oregonian has some great ideas on ways to enjoy your favorite green beer drinking holiday.
Speaking of beer, many Portlanders seem to have a love-hate relationship with our local McMenamins brew pub chain. Some find the beer and food average while others can’t seem to get enough. The local beer blog Beervana has a nice write up on some of its favorite Mcmenamins locations in and around Portland.
If beer (green or otherwise) isn’t enough to quench your need for drinking …
Date: March 16th, 2007 |
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Nude beaches in Portland? Yes, indeed.
You might not associate the Portland area with nude beaches, but there are two clothing-optional beaches in the Portland metro area. The summer sunbathing season might be short, and Oregonian skin might be abnormally pale, but that doesn’t stop us from baring it all on those beaches. To strip off (legally) in public, you’ll need to get yourself to one of these two nude beaches in Portland.
Collins Beach - This sandy beach on Sauvie Island, north of downtown Portland, runs along the Columbia River and is partly clothing optional. It’s a very popular beach with all age groups, and it’s not unusual for the beaches to be packed during the heat of summer. In addition to the stretches of sandy beach, there are also volleyball courts toward the south end of the beach. Not everyone goes without a swimsuit. Collins Beach is regularly patrolled by the Columbia County Sheriff’s department. For directions to Collins Beach, scroll down on this page.
Date: March 17th, 2008 |
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Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden
While Portland’s nickname is the City of Roses, it’s also a fantastic place to see an incredible variety of rhododendrons. It’s quite possible that the general inability to spell “rhododendron” meant that it would never have worked out as a city nickname, but the fact remains that there are rhody plants all over the city. To see the best of the bunch, however, head to the Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden in SE Portland.
What was begun as a rhododendron test garden (similar to the International Rose Test Garden in Washington Park) in 1950 is now a general botanical garden with more than just rhodies throughout its nearly 10 acres. The Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden contains more than 2,500 species of rhododendrons, azaleas and other plants which thrive in this area, as well as pretty landscaping features typical of botanical gardens, like waterfalls, little bridges and meandering pathways. The garden is a popular setting for weddings, as well as wedding portraits.
Date: February 4th, 2008 |
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Tryon Creek State Park
There is no shortage of public green spaces in Portland, but not all of them are city parks. One of the more popular green spaces in the area is the only Oregon state park that’s within the boundaries of a major city - although it’s south of the city center. Tryon Creek State Natural Area is a great place for hiking, bicycling and even horseback riding.
Covering 645 acres, Tryon Creek Park is situated between Boones Ferry Road and Terwilliger Boulevard in SW Portland. Tryon Creek itself runs through the center of the park, and is one of the only streams in the city with a run of steelhead trout. There are a total of eight miles of hiking trails, three miles of paved cycling trails and three-and-a-half miles of horseback riding trails within the park. In addition to these trails, there is even a fully accessible trail for those with mobility issues - the Trillium Trail.
Date: January 7th, 2008 |
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Powell’s Books
If you never visit Portland without an empty suitcase in which to carry books home, know that you’re not alone. Powell’s Books is such a popular stop on many trips to Portland that some people will save their book-buying lists for months anticipating the shopping adventure. The main store, Powell’s City of Books, is the largest independent new and used bookshop on earth. It’s so big, in fact, that the store map is not just handy, it’s a necessity.
Powell’s can be intimidating to the newcomer, and confusing as well. Unlike most new/used booksellers, Powell’s actually shelves both new and used books together. This means that if you find that the book you want is in stock, you won’t necessarily be guaranteed that it’s a new copy. If you find a used copy, however, you’re likely to score a great deal on a book that’s been at least given a once-over to make sure it’s not damaged. Powell’s buys used books every day, so the stock is always changing. True book lovers can - and often do - spend entire days wandering the store’s shelves.
Date: October 8th, 2007 |
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Portland Notes: Mar. 9, 2007
Portland International Airport said on March 5 it expected to have served its 300 millionth passenger since beginning operations 66 years ago. PDX also apparently set an all-time record of more than 14 million passengers served in 2006.
The Portland Saturday Market, now in its 33rd year, is once again open for business.
A new book titled Read Portland: The City in Prose has gotten a write up in the Portland Mercury. The book, which engages in a “literary exploration of the city’s past and present” via almost eighty written selections of various authors and forms of written word, …
Date: March 9th, 2007 |
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