The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) and Oregon Tourism Commission (dba Travel Oregon) announce the designation of a new Scenic Bikeway along the wide-open, low-traffic roads of northeastern Oregon. The Oregon State Parks and Recreation Commission formally approved the new designation yesterday. This addition brings the total number of bikeways to nine, furthering Oregon's position as a premier cycling destination.
The 134-mile leads riders under a scented canopy of Ponderosa pine forests, past stunning views of the Blue Mountains and the Wallowa Mountains and across sweeping sagebrush rangelands near La Grande and Baker City. The bikeway, which covers sections of the original Oregon Trail, offers cycling opportunities for all abilities. Whether adventurers seek a challenging destination ride or prefer to break up the route into leisurely segments, the trail runs near quaint communities with all of the amenities needed to make a trip fun, comfortable and memorable.
The Oregon state scenic bikeway program is the first and only program of its kind and was launched in 2010 with the 132-mile Willamette Valley State Scenic Bikeway. Eight have been added since, and three more are currently in development. The program, which now includes more than 700 miles of designated scenic bikeways, is a partnership between Cycle Oregon, Travel Oregon, Oregon Department of Transportation and Oregon Parks and Recreation Department.
For information on Oregon's scenic bikeways, detailed maps, route descriptions and itinerary ideas visit . To learn more about the program go to .
Fox News has just come out with a nice little article outlining why you need to come to Portland. Check out number 10...
The second season of "Portlandia" – a critically-acclaimed show on IFC that lovingly lampoons life in one of the country's most unique cities, if you've never heard of it – recently ended. But you want to know what's even more fun than watching make jokes about Portland, Oregon on your television? Tuning into the actual city itself. Should you need a little push, here are ten compelling reasons to book a flight, like, now.
1. It's exactly what you think. Funny hats, food trucks, obsessive baristas, urban gardening, bike lovers – Portland is practically a laboratory of all that's hip and cool in North America right now. Soak up the vibe with a visit to the city's legendary Saturday Market, which just launched its 36thseason. The event – which actually runs both Saturdays and Sundays, in the city's historic Chinatown area – features tons of local artisans, as well as plenty to eat ().
2. Take it from the top. Any city can do parks, but how many have gigantic arboretums, brimming with gorgeous flora from around the world, plonked directly on top of the downtown area? Just a short hike up from the bustle of the city center, the cool, green forests and manicured gardens of the Hoyt Arboretum remain one of Portland's finest assets ().
3. Get schooled. Portland is known for inspiring its share of creativity, and schools like the Oregon College of Art – with a handsome campus among the trees on the edge of town – do their part to help channel all that inspiration. See tomorrow's big names today at the school's ever-changing Centrum Gallery, which rotates monthly with work from current students, as well as alumni and faculty. The Retail Craft Gallery on campus sells the work of more than 100 artists, all affiliated with the college (). A short drive down Burnside, back in the heart of town, the Pacific Northwest College of Art is a partner in the cutting-edge Museum of Contemporary Craft, which features a free First Thursday (of every month) event, where the museum stays open into the evening hours ().
4. Beer, schmeer. We all know there's a ton of really good beer around here. Has been for ages. But even cooler is the rise of the city's Distillery Row, a collection of – you guessed it – distilleries located within walking distance of one another, just east of the Willamette River. Together, they are working to ensure that nobody ever needs to drink out-of-town whiskey – or gin, or vodka, or rum – again. Each stop on the Row keeps weekend drop-in tasting hours – learn more at .
5. Okay, fine, beer. Seriously. Coming to Portland and not drinking the local beer is kind of like going to New York and refusing to eat pizza. From Deschutes Brewery's heady black beers to Laurelwood's Organic Green Mammoth IPA, you really can't go wrong; make sure to also sample the more obscure stuff, such as Upright's complex sour beers or Cascade Brewing's barrel-aged Bourbonic Plague, with an ABV of – mind how you go – 12 percent. To brush up on the scene, check out .
6. Simply gorges. Remember how Seattle used to be the cool town and Portland was that little thing you sort of just breezed through? Well, Portland's the one everyone's paying attention to now, and you can stillbreeze through it. There's sprawl here, but not much – from the middle of town to the beginning of the protected Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area can take as little as twenty minutes. Once in, get off the freeway and slow down – there are dozens of waterfalls, more than 100 great hikes of all difficulty levels, and of course, that incredible scenery. Map out your route at .
7. Drink coffee. Portland's coffee is some of the country's best. How good? It's best-known roaster, Stumptown, went on not only to become an immense hit in New York City, but it's also getting its hooks into Seattle, too. They're still the big guy around here, but they're also just a start. Other roasters to know include Coapa, with its chic café in the Industrial District, Courier Coffee on SW Oak Street and Exacto Coffee, which is served at the cool GrindHouse Coffee in up-and-coming corner of North Portland. (Which you can refer to as NoPo, if you like.) If you're in a downtown hotel, your best bet is Sterling Coffee's simple but perfect Coffeehouse Northwest up on Burnside – it's been around a few years now, but it's still one of the most perfect venues in town. Learn more about what's brewing locally at .
8. You gotta eat. Can we talk? About the food? From one of the best bacon-egg-and- cheese-on-a-roll breakfasts you'll ever eat in your life (at Bunk Sandwiches) to epic meat dinners at Laurelhurst Market, a butcher shop and restaurant, to a proper night out at Le Pigeon, spicy wings and cool salads from hipster Thai Pok Pok, crazy bad-for-you breakfasts at Pine State Biscuits, those food carts mentioned previously that serve up every kind of food you can imagine, all over town, to incredibly fresh vegetables and locally (and sensibly) farmed meats, to great Northwest fish and oysters and you name it – Portland is a town for people who really, really like to eat. Don't come expecting a ton of traditionally fine dining – but do come hungry. Really, really hungry. Maybe also bring stretch pants.
9. But save room for dessert. One of the most famous foodstuffs in town for a few years running now has been a now-oft-copied bacon maple contraption at Voodoo Donuts, but that's just the start of the fun. Here you have everything from "Cupcake Wars" champ Kyra Bussanich making magic at Lake Oswego's Crave Bake Shop to Award winner Kim Boyce, making waves at her new Sandy Boulevard bakery, called – rather simply – Bakeshop. But there's nothing simple about the pastry; Boyce has years of experience in top kitchens in Los Angeles. From rhubarb hand pies to fig buckwheat scones, you have to try it all.
10. Work it off. Eventually, even the most intrepid eaters and drinkers will be crying "uncle" – now you know why this town's as into outdoor activity as it is into stuffing awesome things down its gullet. It's called survival. And not weighing 400 pounds. If you're having trouble getting motivated to get up and get going, join a group bike tour – anywhere from an easy spin around downtown or a day out in the Gorge or up in wine country – through Pedal Bike Tours (). If you prefer an upper-body workout, the Portland River Company offers cool guided tours – and instruction, too –out on the Willamette River ().
George Hobica is a syndicated travel journalist and founder of the low-airfare listing site .
Very interesting choices were made in this article by London's online newspaper , but I won't look a gift horse in the mouth!
Portland, Oregon
What's going for it? Do you like letterpress? Do you like vintage clothes? Do you play in a nu-folk band? Then get ye to Boise, Eliot and Overlook in Portland. The city has been the capital of liberal, hipster USA for decades. The Dandy Warhols wrote about their very home town. There are some, indeed, round these parts who'd like the entire Pacific Northwest to break off from the rest of the US and go it alone. So very liberal is Portland that it's a home from home to anyone from Europe, especially if they read the Guardian. Cyclists are loved, not loathed. There are planning restrictions on crappy developments. in the world. Everyone is lovely. My auntie lives there and will make you a nice cup of tea if you're homesick. H.E.A.V.E.N. Shockingly, it still remains relatively good value. Especially the patch north of the Willamette river above the railyards. When I first visited in the early 90s, Boise, Eliot and Overlook were the kind of spots you sped through: always the first sign of a neighbourhood you should buy in. Now you can't move for contemporary modern antiques shops and dinky record stores.
The case against Bit too cool for school. Everyone's like you. Who will you have to hate? Oh, yes, everyone like you. The weather: like Britain, but more so… hotter and colder and danker.
Well connected? Unusually again for the US, cycle and walk without abuse: the most bike- and foot-friendly city in the country, packed with proper cycle routes (15 minutes to downtown from the northside). You may use the car. Occasionally. Perhaps for a surf trip to the coast, or a ski trip to the mountains (both 60-100 minutes).
Hang out at… A food cart: all the rage (check out). Or, for the indulgent, , in an old scrap metal yard. Artisan, innit.
The area is full of 1910s and 1920s bungalows that the local real estate guys call "craftsman style", with handsome stoops and carved wood decoration. There are a fair few vacant lots, too, for the brave, plus 1960s and 1970s infill apartment blocks that, with a zuzz, could be nice. Look off the main drags, like Mississippi and Interstate regeneration projects. Huge detacheds, £415,000-£575,000; four-bed-plus detacheds, £225,000-£415,000; two- or three-bed detacheds, £140,000-£215,000. Condos below this.
Bargain of the week Two-bed detached on NE Sacramento, £128,000, with .
"You like us you really like us!" Well, we already knew it, but luxury travel magazine recently announced the winners of the 2011 GT Tested Reader Survey awards and Oregon was named the “Best Domestic Tourism Destination."
Nearly 36,000 Global Traveler readers voted on nearly 70 different categories covering everything from airlines to hotels and travel destinations. Each year new categories are added recognizing innovation in the travel industry throughout the world.
Distributed nationally, Global Traveler, focuses on issues and concerns of interest to business and luxury travelers.
Nice job being so cool Oregon!
To give you a taste of our state Uncage the Soul Productions recently released a spectacular video titled "Finding Oregon," which showcases the natural beauty of Oregon. The video is a compilation of 6 months of timelapse photography across the state. Read more .
Local building management company Melvin Mark has recognized the partnership between Go Box and Pedal as a great way to go green and stay in shape.
More Ways to Go Green at the Haseltine Building
Greetings!
Eat your lunch and love the planet too.
GO Box is a new, innovative service providing reusable to-go containers to downtown Portland food carts and their customers. With GO Box, food cart customers get their meal in a reusable, durable container. More GO Box containers mean less trash.
Now E-San Thai and Pedal Bike Tours, located in the Haseltine Building, have added a GO Box program! When you order take-out from E-San Thai, ask to join the GO Box program, your food will come in a reusable container that you can then rinse and drop off at Pedal Bike Tours. You will then be given a token for the next time you eat at a food cart or restaurant participating in the program. To learn more, go towww.goboxpdx.com.
2012 Resolution #5: less gas, more fitness.
Pedal Bike Tours in the Haseltine Building offers free lunchtime fitness rides. Available starting in January on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays at noon, they are a great way to get some exercise and see our great city of Portland. A changing room and shower is also available at the shop. For more information or a list of other bike tours, check outwww.pedalbiketours.com.
: Every Thursday Evening in December From 4-8 p.m. every Thursday evening in December, cross things off your to-do list and have some fun with special events, free parking at SmartPark garages until midnight (enter between 4-6 p.m.) and live merry music sponsored by Portland Mall Management, Inc.
Come Holidate at Pedal this thursday from 4 to 8 PM. Enjoy holiday beers, wine and hot cider while browsing for unique locally made gifts like
chic bags from Po Campo
beautiful jewelry from Velo Gioielli
playing cards featuring local landmarks by local artist Aaron Trotter
and much more like t-shirts, jerseys, socks, wallets, cards, panniers and more.
Everyone who comes in will get a free copy of the brand new edition of Pedal's Picks, Portland's only combination bike map and city guide, featuring 160 of the best restaurants, bars, cafes and sightseeing.
This year’s BikeCraft was a great place for local crafters and retailers to network, and fortunately we happened upon Amy Erickson’s stellar . Now you can find Amy’s handiwork in our downtown shop any time of year. What’s Firefly Gear all about? Here’s what Amy has to say:
Firefly Gear is my playground for adding some fun and mojo to your cycling experience. As an artist living in Portland, it's easy to find inspiration from our vibrant bike culture here. Whether you want a "patron patch" to keep you safe, a reflective flower to jazz up your visibility or piece of art, this is the place to find it.
The “Patron Patch” is a bike themed iron-on patch featuring the Madonna del Ghissalo – patron saint of cyclists. And who knew cyclists even had a patron saint? Thanks for looking that one up, Amy. It never hurts to have a little extra help out on the road. For those of you less inclined to catholic saints, Amy also makes Bicycle Buddha and Spoke Fairy patches.
Of course her products offer more than just spiritual protection. Amy’s stylish ankle straps and pins are even reflective, so you’ll be visible at night. Let’s face it; if you wear cute stuff, it makes sense to be as visible as possible.
Don’t wait for next year’s Bike Craft. You can find Firefly Gear patches, straps and pins at Pedal Bike Tours all year long!
Welcome to to Pedal's collection of locally made Bike Crafts: "A large majority of the materials are picked up via bicycles in the Portland area. 90% percent of the materials are re-used: tubes, derailleur cable and chain. "
To celebrate their addition to our family of beautiful and useful products, get 20% off through Friday, 12/9
Broken Spoke Designs originated from a 2009 bicycling tour in New Zealand, where owner Nathan Engkjer spent 3 and a half months exploring the north and south islands. 3600 miles (5794 km), 0 flats and 2 drive-side rear broken spokes later, Broken Spokes Designs had its origin. Fast forward one year to a concept of using upcycled bike materials to create a very sustainable, durable and one of a kind journal and sketch book and you'll find our first prototype: a somewhat horribly designed and user unfriendly product. Bringing you to the present and another year later, Nathan has fine tuned his journals and sketch books. After many labor intensive hours and product revisions you will find a truly earth friendly and unique product.
Unlike other companies reusing tubes we are not picky. In fact we celebrate and incorporate all tubes, big, small, beat up, patched up, marked up and otherwise worked over. There's a couple of reasons for this. First off, we want our journals to be as unique as each of the people purchasing them. While the design remains consistent, the writing, patches, lack of patches and numbering are all different. No two are alike, making each truly one of a kind, just like you. Secondly and maybe more importantly, Broken Spoke Designs is doing its best to create a product using as low a carbon footprint as possible. A large majority of the materials are picked up via bicycles in the Portland area. 90% percent of the materials are re-used: tubes, derailleur cable and chain. 8% of the materials are recycled: paper 100% post consumer waste. 2% of the materials are new: heavy nylon thread used to stitch the covers and newspaper board which lie inside the front and back cover of each journal and sketch book.*
At Broken Spoke Designs we're not looking to reinvent the wheel just reuse it. Help us in our mission to reduce, reuse and upcycle. Thank you for caring and we hope that you'll enjoy our products. *Broken Spoke Designs is continually striving to create a truly 100% upcycled/recycled product. We are committed to making this a reality and welcome anyone with ideas or knowledge to recycled materials in this category.
(), introduces their newest tour, this time on snowshoes. The takes guests on an easy paced snowshoeing adventure and lunch at Timberline Lodge, just over an hour outside of Portland in the deep snow of the Cascade mountains.
Pedal’s professional guides drive guests to experience the beauty of the forest and pure snow over half way up Mt. Hood. After the steep drive up the side of the mountain guests embark on a 1 hour guided trek through the fresh air and silent world of snow, with close-up views of the 11,000 foot mountain and the majestic Cascade mountain range.
Hot drinks await at the end of the scenic snowshoe walk followed by a delicious buffet lunch at the magnificent, historic Timberline Lodge, built in 1938 using local materials, artisans and craftspeople.
The $149 six hour tour departs daily at 9AM, includes transportation, guide, snowshoes, instruction, lunch at Timberline Lodge, snacks and hot drinks.
For more information or to sign up for a tour visit , or call 503.243.2453.
Nearly 36,000 Global Traveler readers voted on nearly 70 different categories covering everything from airlines to hotels and travel destinations. Each year new categories are added recognizing innovation in the travel industry throughout the world.
