What’s better than two Kentuckians in Oregon? Three Kentuckians in Oregon!
Our friend, Mallory, who we met back home at UK, and now lives an incredibly awesome and interesting life on a farm near LA, came to visit! We haven’t had a ton of visitors from home since moving to Oregon (as Oregon is quite far from our old Kentucky home), but I tell you what; it doesn’t get much better than visits with old friends.
We made this whole list of things we wanted to do with Mal during her visit, mostly highlighting Oregon’s mountains and great views. Unfortunately, much of the Pacific Northwest is currently on fire. And while lackluster views are obviously our least concern when it comes to wildfires, it did throw a small hitch in our plans.
Luckily, Mal was a good sport and pretended to believe us every time we pointed into the smoke and promised there was a mountain over there.
We went for a hike at Angel’s Rest in the Columbia River Gorge, which, on a clear day, has views like this. It’s a really great hike (particularly when Oregon doesn’t smell like a giant campfire), not too far from the city, with great views for very little effort.
This time around, there was a lot of, “Well, you can’t see it, but that’s the Columbia River down there, and across the river is Washington.” I promise it’s real, Mal.
From there, we continued on to Hood River to enjoy part of the Hood River Fruit Loop. I really wanted to show off the views of Mt. Hood and Mt. Adams at various spots around the loop, but it ended up being a lot of, “Now, imagine if you will, a big mountain right there. And another mountain over there.” Once again, Mal, I promise the mountains are real. (For an idea of what the Hood River Fruit Loop looks like on a glorious summer day, check out this trip.)
Luckily, we got to stop at Cascades Alpacas, where the smoke couldn’t keep these guys from being hilariously adorable. Is there anything more ridiculous than an alpaca? I don’t think so. (For another alpaca adventure, check out our trip to Meadowrock Alpaca Farm.)
While the views in the Hood River Valley were nonexistent, we did get to pick up some fresh peaches, plums, and some lavender remnants, which made our car smell like a dream.
We started the next morning with a walk to breakfast on the way to Forest Park. I have to share this photo of my chocolate hazelnut croissant from St. Honore Boulangerie because it was literally the greatest pastry experience of my life.
I really wanted to show off Forest Park because it is, honestly, my favorite thing about the city of Portland. We got in a nice little hike and saw the happiest baby of all time (picture a kid strapped in a front facing carrier, legs and arms bouncing in excitement, hair sticking straight out in some sort of permanent static state, and the biggest grin in the history of small children).
We spent Sunday afternoon wine tasting at Ponzi Historic Estate before heading over to Ponzi Winery for some lunch, more wine, and bocce ball. (Mallory dominated bocce ball, in case you were wondering.)
Since the sky was covered in smoke, we thought there might be a nice sunset. But it appears that us going out of our way to see a sunset is a sure sign that it won’t be terribly impressive. Still, it was pretty neat to see a completely florescent sun hanging over the city from our spot on Mt. Tabor.
All this smoke couldn’t keep us from enjoying Portland’s main event: eating. I believe this is a comprehensive list of our dining experience:
Breakfast:
Lunch and Dinner:
Full Sail Brewing Co. (Hood River)
Dessert:
Here’s to many more visits from our Kentucky friends (hint, hint)!
-Ally
P.S. For more touring Oregon itineraries, check out these posts.
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