Camp 18 Restaurant in Elsie, Oregon: Logging, Bigfoot and a Cinnamon Roll

Enjoying a Bit of Logger History and Hearty Fare at Camp 18

Camp 18 on US 26 between Portland and the coast in Oregon is a must stop. The cabin structure gives you that backwoods feel like you are at an oasis for loggers. The menu is full of comfort food, just as you would expect after a long day of logging. However, the food is not the only reason to stop at Camp 18. Camp 18 warrants a longer stop to check out some of the old logging equipment and other items on the grounds as part of the Logging Museum. Of particular note are the woodcarved loggers, bears and even Bigfoot:

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Foodie Finds in Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon certainly does not fall short on the foodie scene. The city is full of intriguing and innovative restaurants. We had quite the adventure exploring and sampling a variety of flavors. We could probably spend months exploring culinary treasures in the city! Alas, we only had a few days but we made some fab discoveries:

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Lan Su Chinese Garden in Portland, Oregon

Lan Su Chinese Garden is a walled garden treasure right in Portland. Exploring the garden, we could hardly remember that we were in fact in a city. From the moment you step inside, you are a world away.

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Waterfall Hunting Near Portland, Oregon

The Columbia River Gorge near Portland, Oregon provides for many opportunities to view magnificent scenery and even enjoy waterfall hunting. We delighted in exploring three waterfalls on our trip and there are many more in the area. The Columbia River Gorge is a stunning canyon carved by the magnificent Columbia River. The area is marked with mountains, overlooks, waterfalls, rivers and more. The scenery is powerful in the entire area treating visitors with a plethora of nature experiences.

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Scenes from the International Rose Test Garden in Portland, Oregon

Established in 1917, the International Rose Test Garden in Portland, Oregon is the oldest continually growing public rose test garden in the nation. Situated in the "City of Roses," the garden was created to save species of roses from being lost to bombings during WWI. The garden is a lovely and vibrant maze of roses:

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Ecola State Park on the Oregon Coast

After meandering some time at Cannon Beach, we took a short drive over to Ecola State Park. Ecola State Park was quite busy when we arrived and we would soon learn why. We were lucky to get a parking spot -- one of the lots was marked closed when we first arrived. Fortunately, the park ranger at the entrance let us know that we arrived at a time when a lot of visitors start leaving the park and we should find a spot. Find a spot we did and after a short walk, we soaked in this view:

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Waves, Tide Pools and Relaxation at Cannon Beach in Oregon

We drove up the Oregon shore to Cannon Beach from Tillamook along US Route 101. The route hugs points on the coast and has some great views of the Pacific Ocean as well as coastal communities. We enjoyed the drive so much that we managed to fit it twice into our visit! How can you resist views like this:

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Tillamook Creamery: Learning About How Cheese Is Made ... and Trying Some, Of Course!

Tillamook Creamery in Tillamook, Oregon is a very well-rounded family experience. During our visit to Oregon, we spent two days along the Oregon Coast and I knew that we had to check out Tillamook once. Well, we loved it so much that we went twice.  The centerpiece of the creamery allows visitors to see cheese being made and parts of the production process you may not think about like cutting the blocks and making adjustments to create standard blocks. However, there is much more to experience at the creamery!

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Traveling on the Empire Builder Train to Washington and Oregon

We just returned from a summer adventure riding Amtrak's Empire Builder to Seattle and returning via Portland, Oregon with several excursions in Washington and Oregon. Our overall trip lasted 10 days with four days of train travel. Our adventures in between our train treks included hiking, visiting gardens, enjoying beach days, learning about cheese making, exploring Washington's capitol and more. We packed in a lot of exploration and the train trip was a great part of the adventure! Follow along as I share our discoveries including:

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Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area on the Stunning Oregon Coast

My friend Julie Henning over at Roadtrips for Families moved to Oregon earlier this year. Ever since, I have been totally captivated by the raw natural beauty that she has been discovering during her Oregon adventures! This week, I am happy to bring a guest post by Julie about one of her splendid discoveries along the Oregon Coast, Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area. If you are starting to plan spring or summer travel, you may want to check this out! Thank you, Julie, for sharing this stunning discovery with us!

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