Oregon

Make sure you add this hidden gem to your waterfall chasing plans on your road trip to Oregon. This underrated Oregon waterfall is the perfect hike for the entire family. The trail offers four different falls from 10-30 feet high. The trail slowly climbs 2.2 miles through a beautiful thick forest...

Starting from Scott Lake in the Willamette National Forest, take the Benson Lake Trail head that starts at the end of the road. This climbs gradually up to Benson Lake, a large, deep, cold lake. From there follow the trail up until you see a junction and a sign to Tenas Lakes. Follow this trail u...

Starting in the "Old West" town of Sisters, Oregon and ending at Smith Rock State Park outside the small town of Terrebonne, this route takes riders past a variety of historical sites, shows the gentle curves of the Deschutes River and frames spectacular views of the Cascade Mountains, and ends w...

This 500 ft. long gorge carved out of an old lava tube sits right along highway 62 near Crater Lake. The original road that brought travelers to the National Park passed right next to the gorge but it now remains hidden from view of the current highway.  The area isn't large but has a nice parki...

Youngs River Falls is a scenic 50-foot waterfall on Youngs River, about 15 minutes outside of Astoria. The falls are somewhat unique in that the base is located only about 10 feet above sea level From Astoria. The falls have been featured in several movies, most notably Free Willy 2 and Teenage M...

Getting here was half the adventure. Google led us in quite the wrong way. Whatever you do, approach this park from Allegany, outside of Coos Bay. From Allegany there are signs to the park. The road is about 9 miles from here. Drive until the road dead ends with cement blocks. Here you will have ...

The Trail: This hike is one of the 2 routes that lead to the lookout, and the shorter of the two. It requires more driving to get to the trailhead than the other, but less walking, so if that sounds appealing to you, you have come to the right place! First, you'll be greeted by a dense forest w...

The view from this spot is definitely worth the drive, if you're visiting Portland or the Columbia River Gorge area I highly recommend taking the time to stop here. Not a lot of people know about this spot and its likely you'll be the only person/people there!If you get the chance, definitely com...

The Black Crater Trailhead parking lot is accessed off the McKenzie Pass (Hwy 242). The trailhead starting elevation is 5,040ft. (using the iPhone app "Topo Maps". Great app) with a 3.8 Mile hike one way to the Black Crater Summit at 7,251ft of elevation. Some parts of the trail are steep and g...

Bandon, Oregon, located on the Southern Oregon coast, is about 90 miles north of the California border and about five hours south of Portland. In other words, it's just far enough away so that it has not become a touristy, seaside destination. And that's good news for all of us.This sleepy seasid...

The Wild and Scenic Clackamas River above the North Fork Reservoir is a great destination for paddlers and only about an hour drive from downtown Portland. This popular 13.5 mile section of river lies within the Mt. Hood National Forest and offers continuous class II-III boating with a little cla...

The Deschutes River Trail—an old smooth road really, with a mix of dirt, sand and gravel—is a great mountain bike ride or hike for beginners and experts alike. While the trail is very easy, the scenery all along the route is breathtaking.Park at the well-marked trailhead just to the left as you e...

Begin this 2-3 day backpacking trek at the Santiam Pass trailhead off Highway 20, 31 miles east of Detroit and 21 miles west of Sisters, Oregon. You can begin the loop either north on the PCT or East on trail #4014 towards Square Lake (as it is a loop) I would recommend heading east. It's a 2.2 ...

At the northwestern-most point of Oregon sits Fort Stevens State Park. Located 3 ½ hrs from Seattle and 2 hrs from Portland, the park sits closest to the city of Astoria. The park itself has over 4300 acres to explore, with day use and camping open year round. However, the most well-known and mos...

After getting your back country permit from a park ranger, you can park your car and head up Zigzag Mountain. There's a tiny 'parking lot' (lot of dirt) where you park that's right by the trailhead. The hike up to the campsites is roughly 4 miles, and it is all uphill. Not only are you surrounde...

The Yaquina Head Natural Area is home to the historic 93 ft tall Yaquina Head lighthouse, built in 1872. The construction of the lighthouse from approximately 370,000 bricks took nearly a year, and the lighthouse has been active ever since.The park is open daily, from 7am until sunset; however, i...