07.23.11 Eugene
Eugene has to be the most blatantly hippie town we have ever been. It makes Santa Cruz and San Francisco seem like Provo, Utah. In other words: we loved it! As I mentioned before the entire city is teeming with greenery with beautiful little homes tucked between. Everywhere is walk-able, so after waking and walking to an astounding veggie breakfast at a hip little cafe with the best carrot-cake muffin I have ever consumed, we walked then to the cities Saturday farmers market.
The market was a big deal; lots of delicious local food and unique crafts. This was where the ultra-hippie-ness of Eugene became apparent as everyone congregated outside town hall for a big crusty drum circle. In the middle of the chaos was this ancient couple of old hippies.
I have determined that this is to be Jessica and I in fifty or so years, but I think we’d better start doing way more drugs! I guess I will just have to get used to Jessica having a beard too.
More proof that Eugene is one of the weirder cities on the planet is shown in the following two photos. Observe in photo number 1 how dirty and crusty the dancing hippies are.
In this next picture is apparently a church group playing instruments to the accompaniment of said crusty hippies.
This is why we loved Eugene. Only here can two so different groups come together in such peace and harmony. Retirees and hippies, hipsters and young families, driven college students and complete slackers: Eugene has something for everyone!
We loved exploring more of the farmers market, then headed to the “Taste of Eugene” event, where dozens of stalls served utterly delicious food and beer at particularly low prices for a food festival. Seriously, like $2 for chicken skewers, $1 for homemade corn bread, $3 for beer. Oregon is awesome.
The day of food, fun, friends and beer ended with cake, followed by resting our feet and chatting at Christina’s humble abode. Eugene is a cute city, but more exploration beckons, so onward and upward!
07.24.11 Eugene to Bend
Our first stop on our way to Bend was at Cougar hot springs. We parked along a massive reservoir and did the short hike to a series of five rock pools of steaming hot mineral water. In the pools sat a variety of people including a very loud, very large, and very drunk family of…what’s a polite way of saying it: “town-folk”? All of fourteen teeth between them clacking away made the scene a wee-tad uncomfortable, though thankfully the heat and liquor got the best of them and they picked up and left.
We were left then with a bunch of naked older dudes, soaking to the bone. Not too much better, but we’ll take it. The pools were enjoyable, a bit too hot for me, but Jessica apparently thrives in volatile environments. The surroundings did give the pools a sincere charm, but soon we decided to hit the road, still so much to see!
The road from the springs to Bend was curvaceous and beautiful. What we did not expect, however, was massive volcanic rocks sprawling as far as the eye could see. Deschutes national forest was unexpectedly awesome in this respect. Lava rocks with pockets of lush forest and surrounded by snow-capped mountains. One of the more surreal and beautiful bits of scenery we have witnessed yet! The drive was spectacular, with a few wonderful spots to stop along to way for particularly picturesque views.
Bend was a far cuter city than we’d imagined. Initially our only reason for stopping through was one of our favorite Breweries, the aptly named Deschutes. What we found was a tiny California surf town, though neither in California, nor in fact anywhere near the ocean. That didn’t stop the locals from participating in water sports as nearly half the town had taken their board, inner-tube, or any floating device they could get their hands on, to lazily float down the river under a stunning blue sky, and big, bright yellow sun
After we headed to the local hotspot, 10 Barrels, for more awesome beer, and some sincerely delicious pub food. The place was packed with clean-cut locals ranging from tattooed youngsters to golf-attired adults. Not a crusty, smelly hippie for as far as the eye can see. Truly the antithesis of Eugene, Bend felt more like San Diego or Orange county coast, though maybe without as much plastic surgery?
We headed north again towards Mt. Hood and Portland. The night was soon upon us however, so we drove through some picturesque farmland to Cove Palisades State Park where we set up tent in an RV vacation park just a bit off of a massive river carving through a huge gorge.
07.25.11 – Mt. Hood
We awoke, pack up and left, taking in one last view over the gorge.
Through the farms we went again then up north to Mt. Hood State Park. Driving through the trees and fog was beautiful. Jess prefers clear blue skys, but I think the fog gives the trees a unique and eerie atmosphere. We took a right turn on some scenic road, and we ended up at the historical base lodge of Mt. Hood. We had some great views of the mountain plus the forest below, and in the charming lodge we received valuable information for the next part of our exploration of Mt. Hood.
We swooped through the tall trees of Mt. Hood and to the gorge which carves the border between Washington and Oregon. The gorge sported some great hiking and cascading waterfalls which we spend a good few hours exploring, then back in the car to hit Portland.
We headed directly to Jay and Teresa’s place where for the first time we got to meet baby Callie, almost 1 year old now! She was as adorable as the tales told, and seeing Teresa again for the first time in a long while was a great treat. Jay however, with his busy work schedule would not be home for hours, so Jess and I cooked a big dinner for everyone and chatted with Teresa about the joys and not-so-joys of motherhood.
Jay finally came home, we kept him up a bit past bedtime catching up, then we all hit the sack.
07.26.11 – Portland
Breakfast at the Swedish restaurant Broder was flawless. The place was cute, hip, and the food delicious. Every little detail was considered in this place, from the hot milk served in glass measuring bottles, to the square eggs. Truly Portlandish.
It is our second time in Portland, we had to give another visit to the bookstore behemoth: Powell’s Books. Apparently an entire city block was not enough books as they have since added another section of the store across the street. The city center is great with towering buildings dotted with hip cafes, unique shops, weird art, parks, fountains, and the usual spotting of meth-heads. If Eugene belongs to the Hippies, Bend to outdoor enthusiasts, then Portland belongs to Hipsters…and meth-heads. All three are unique, all three have amazing beer, with no sales tax, and all three we love! Oregon is quickly becoming a place we could consider moving.>
Next stop was an unexpectedly delicious brewery called Hopworks. We had their sampling of 12 beers, with some great bread sticks and salad. Beer is fun, and if we lived in this town, the HUB brewery would be a common hangout for us.
We headed back to meet Teresa and Callie for a walk (or for some of us, a backpack ride) through Reed University. A very cute brick campus splattered with vines and trees. On the way back I found he feeding habits of the locals ducks to be hysterical. They just stuck their heads underwater, their butts sticking out, I don’t know if everyone else was as amused.
Back at the homestead Callie met a group of her friends, the neighborhood young-uns. They quickly became fast friends of me as well, likely because I humor them with their odd questions, and my silly retorts. Soon they decided to pile on top of me, this is something that seems to happen often in my life, I’m like the Pied Piper.
Jay came home early and Jess and I cooked dinner for them, some salad, chicken, and pasta leftovers from the night before. We all went over the the neighbors place where the kids were getting naked around chickens and a tiny pool. After hanging out past sunset, we let Jay and Teresa catch some much needed sleep and headed out to see more of Portland.
This is when the greatest beer of my life, the opus of beer making, the pinnacle of greatness graced itself upon our lips. Cascade Barrel Brewing, and its crew of magical beer wizards, poured us a sampling of four glorious beers. Each brewed using old time traditional methods, lovingly hand brewed, with top ingredients, and aged to perfection in a variety of oak barrel casks previously used to ferment liquors such as Cabanet Sauvignon and Whiskey. The Bourbonic Plague, or as beer enthusiasts such as ourselves may call it “perfection.” A very dark, sour porter brewed in bourbon and wine barrels, with hints of vanilla and cinnamon and aged 14 months with dates. Now don’t let the description fool you, it is anything but a sweet beer: full bodied, thick, and incredibly delicious!
Such perfection comes at a cost. None of the beers are available for sale outside of the tasting room itself. The Bourbonic Plague, emperor of beers, is only bottled in tiny batches, typically only available on draft in this establishment. This particular brewing process I suppose is too precious to squander on plebeians with bottles.
After our tasting, the place closed for the night, only our greatest luck allowed us to get there minutes before. With the shutting of the gates, so shut my dreams…I guess we will just have to move to Portland…
The next stop was an English pub, the Brass Horse, cute, eclectic, and serving more local beers par excellence. Still, my thoughts and taste-buds had been Plagued, Bourbonic Plagued! Okay enough, likely no one but me cares how awesome it was…but seriously it was awesome. Oregon has conquered our taste-buds with good food and great beer at remarkably reasonable prices for everything…did I mention we would consider moving here?
Well that’s all of Oregon. As always the full set of pics is at our Flickr site:
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