THINGS TO DO IN PORTLAND
I wanted to share some of the great places to go and explore here in Portland. I had the opportunity in my Personal Assistance work to help a friend of mine’s mother by driving her to her appointments and to some of the great activities and attractions in Portland and the surrounding area. We had a wonderful time on these outings and I’ve made a list of places we went and where we might want to go. It’s been fun to learn more about Portland and it’s been a wonderful way to get to know my new friend.
I offer also as a Personal Assistant to be a Tour Guide for fun local outings in the Portland area, Oregon and southern Washington.
Art Galleries in the Pearl - http://explorethepearl.com/ or do the First Thursday walk: http://www.firstthursdayportland.com/ Portland has a great art scene and a lot of galleries to peruse. I love to browse through and see what's being created here.
Chinese Garden - 10 am to 5 pm daily. 239 NW Everett Street, Portland OR. The Lan Su Chinese garden was built by Chinese artisans from Suzhou and is the most authentic Chinese garden outside of China. http://www.lansugarden.org/ Th rocks and sculptures throughout the garden are amazing and if you take the tour you find out what they all mean in Chinese lore. You also might run across a Tai Chi class or some great local art.
Big Pink Trolley – 10 am, to last pick up at 4pm, or anywhere in between. Hop on Hop off trolley all around Portland. http://graylineofportland.net/ There's more to Portland than one might think. I want to take this ride to find out what else I can put on the list.
Eastbank Esplanade walk - SE Water Ave & Hawthorne Blvd. Walk between the Hawthorne Bridge and the Steele bridge on the east side of the Willamette River. Parking under the east side of the Hawthorne bridge. http://www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/finder/index.cfm?&propertyid=105&action=viewpark
I love this walk for the views of the city from the east side and to be so close to the river, even if the freeway noise gets a little loud at times. Sundays are the best for more quiet.
Elk Rock Garden of the Bishops Close - Go south on Macadam toward Lake Oswego. It’s along the river. 11800 SW Military Lane Portland, Or 97219 The garden is open daily from 8am to 5pm. http://www.elkrockgarden.org/
Hoyt Arboretum for a walk. There are paved paths. 4000 Southwest Fairview Boulevard, Portland, OR 97221-2706, Portland, OR 97205 Open 9:00am-4:00pm (503) 865-8733 http://www.hoytarboretum.org/
International Rose Test Garden Washington Park - Garden
hours: 7:30am-9:00pm
400 SW Kingston Ave, Portland, OR 97205 (503) 823-3636
http://www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/finder/index.cfm?action=ViewPark&ShowResults=yes&PropertyID=1113
Japanese Garden - 611 SW Kingston Ave, Portland, OR 97205 Fall hours: Monday: Noon-4pm Tuesday–Sunday: 10am-4pm $9.50 Adult $7.75 Senior (62+) http://japanesegarden.com/ Peak fall colors are in late October. This is a really wonderful place to be immersed in nature right in the city. It feels good just to be there, to sit and take in the peaceful energy of the landscape.
Kelly Point Park - N Kelly Point Park Rd, Portland, OR 97203 West on Marine Drive to where the Willamette and the Columbia meet. This is also a spot on the Lewis and Clark Trail. There is a paved path. Picnic tables, walk through the woods along the river.
Mt. Tabor - SE Salmon Way, Portland, OR 97215. Good for a walk and look out west to the great view of downtown and the west hills. Good dog park area. Both paved roads and dirt trails through the park. http://www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/finder/index.cfm?PropertyID=275&action=ViewPark
North Waterfront - Walk under the Burnside Bridge, north to and under the Steele Bridge, then a couple blocks north. Turn west and walk over the train bridge to the train station and up into the Pearl. http://explorethepearl.com/ This is a really fun walk if you feel like exploring and walking along the river.
NW 23rd St - Walk down and back between Burnside and Raleigh. Lots of shops, restaurants. http://nwpdxnobhill.com/ It's fun just to take a stroll through and window shop.
OHSU Tram - Cost $4.35 3303 SW Bond Ave, Portland, OR 97239 Weekdays: 5:30am to 9:30pm Saturday: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Including travel and boarding time, cabins typically depart every 6 minutes. A trip is 4 minutes each way. Visit the upper terminal and nearby patios and cafes for as long as you wish. Pick a nice day to take a ride so you can see Mt. Hood. It’s a fun little ride up to OHSU and back. There are lots of new little shops and restaurants down in that area. Including travel and boarding time, cabins typically depart every 6 minutes. A trip is 4 minutes each way. Visit the upper terminal and nearby patios and cafes for as long as you wish. http://www.gobytram.com
Rice Museum of Rocks and Minerals - I absolutely love this place! It has the most amazing a beautiful collection of rocks, gems, fossils, petrified wood and minerals that I have ever seen.
The Rice Northwest Rock and Mineral Museum is located 25 minutes from downtown Portland, Oregon, on Highway 26 West at the Helvetia Rd./Brookwood Exit. https://ricenorthwestmuseum.org/about/location/
Open Wednesday through Friday from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Closed New Year's Day, July 4th, Thanksgiving, and Christmas Day
OMSI - Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. OMSI is located on the east bank of the Willamette River, just south of downtown Portland.1945 SE Water Ave. Portland, OR 97214-3354 Tues- Sun 9:30am — 5:30pm. Great for Kids. Lots of things to play with.
https://www.omsi.edu/visit
Oregon History Museum - free to Multnomah County Residents 1200 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97205 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday – Saturday Noon - 5 p.m. Sunday. Great exhibits, local history on all kinds of things. http://www.ohs.org/visit-ohs/index.cfm I really like this museum. It has some great displays and usually some good art as well as a variety to different exhibits though out the year.
Oregon Zoo - 4001 SW Canyon Rd, Portland, OR 97221 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the grounds are open until 5 p.m. http://www.oregonzoo.org/ I am not fond of caging animals, but this is a pretty nice zoo and the kids love it. They have expanded a number of areas so that there is more room for the animals. In the summer the zoo has a great concert series and in the winter there are Zoo Lights, a fun display of holiday lights.
Pittock Mansion - 3229 NW Pittock Dr, Portland, OR 97210 11–4PM Daily The Pittock Mansion was home to Portland pioneers Henry and Georgiana Pittock from 1914 to 1919. It has been restored and is kind of fun to walk around and explore. http://pittockmansion.org/visit-the-mansion/
Portland Art Museum - 1219 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR
97205 !0am to 5pm every day except Thurs & Fri. open until 8pm. Lots
of great permanent art, but also great traveling exhibits.
http://portlandartmuseum.org/exhibits/the-collection/
Powell's City of Books - 1005 W Burnside St. between 10th and 11th Ave. Portland, OR 97209. This is a is a book lover's paradise, the largest used and new bookstore in the world. Located in downtown Portland, Oregon, and occupying an entire city block, the City stocks more than a million new and used books. Nine color-coded rooms house over 3,500 different sections, offering something for every interest, including an incredible selection of out-of-print and hard-to-find titles. Open every day of the year. http://www.powells.com/
Rose Garden in Peninsula Park - 700 N Rosa Parks Way hours: 5:00am-midnight Great place to look at roses in the summer and they have a community outdoor pool at the other end of the park. http://www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/finder/index.cfm?&propertyid=507&action=viewpark
Shanghai Tunnels - 120 NW 3rd Ave, Portland, OR
97209 They are a group of passages running underneath Old Town/China Town down
to the central downtown section of Portland
http://www.shanghaitunnels.info/ ,
http://www.portlandwalkingtours.com/tours/underground-portland-shanghai-tunnels-tour/
South Waterfront walk - You can park down around SW Montgomery and walk north a little bit along the river, up and into Waterfront Park. You can have a longer walk south, along the river and into the new complex of buildings around the Tram. There are some nice gardens along the way, as well as shops and restaurants. http://www.southwaterfront.com/transportation/walk.html
Tryon Creek State Park - 11321 SW Terwilliger Blvd, Portland, OR 97219 open daily 7am – Dusk. There is a paved path and lots of other dirt trails along the creek and through the park. http://www.tryonfriends.org/ This is another great place to get out in and be surrounded by nature as well as a little art. The paved trail often has some art offerings to discover in the forest.
Washington Park and the West Hills - 1715 SW Skyline Blvd, Portland, OR 97221 Open every day. Washington Park and the West Hills goes North from Hwy 26 and covers a large area of the east side of the West Hills. It has the Zoo, The Children’s Museum, the World Forestry Center, The Japanese Garden, The International Rose Test Garden, Hoyt Arboretum, The Autobon Society, large park areas and playgrounds, and miles of hiking and biking trails. http://www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/finder/index.cfm?&propertyid=841&action=viewpark
World Forestry Center Discovery Museum - 4033 SW Canyon Rd, Portland, OR 97221 Washington Park Hours: 10am-5pm Daily October 1 - Memorial Day: Closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Families and school groups will find exhibits that pique curiosity and encourage active learning. http://www.worldforestry.org/discovery-museum/our-museum.html
The Grotto - 8840 NE Skidmore St, Portland, OR 62 acres of Botanical Gardens Open daily 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM Nice gardens all year round that are all lit up during the holidays. http://www.thegrotto.org/events/christmas-festival-of-lights/