Portland, Ore., to the Sea
Avoid the crowds and take remote Highway 30, west of Portland to see Raymond Carver’s birthplace, bald eagles, and Oregon’s oldest port town, St. Helens.
IF YOU'RE GOING...
Just northwest of Portland along the Columbia River, there's a road that stretches seaward through a green, beautiful land unsung by guidebooks. Highway 30, a hundred miles long, offers myriad views of the Columbia and a few flashes of sophisticated urban culture amid the ham-and-egg charms of rural Oregon. To make these stops, give yourself a full day.
- SCAPPOOSE BAY KAYAKING Twenty miles north of Portland in Warren, take a paddling tour through wetlands as you watch for ospreys, river otters, and bald eagles. (877) 272-3353, scappoosebaykayaking.com.
- ST. HELENS In Oregon's oldest port town, the Klondike Mediterranean Bar & Grill serves delectable shish kebab in a circa 1910 four-story building that once housed a brothel. (503) 397-4297.
- CLATSKANIE The highly acclaimed short story writer Raymond Carver (1938–1988) was born here. The son of a mill worker, he wrote about the hard luck of everyday people. Find a plaque honoring him at 161 North Nehalem Street. clatskaniedays.com.
- SHOOTING STAR LAVENDER Farm Some 4,000 lavender plants, soft and fragrant, grow here. (503) 728-4236, shootingstarlavender.com.
- WESTPORT Catch the Wahkiakum County Ferry (www.co.wahkiakum.wa.us/depts/pw) and gaze northeast toward Mount St. Helens as the boat makes its 12-minute trip to Puget Island. Then take a four-mile pastoral drive into the village of Cathlamet, Wash., and savor high tea at the Bradley House Inn (360-795-3030).
- ASTORIA COLUMN At the terminus of the Columbia, register the river's full force by climbing the 125-foot-high column and watching the wide flow crash into the sea. Then roll into Astoria for a drink by the port.
Illustration by Michael Klein
This article was first published in May 2006. Some facts may have aged gracelessly. Please call ahead to verify information.
