Pacific Northwest Holiday
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Quiz: How Should you Plan your Pacific Northwest Vacation?

BySusan Stephens

Oregon, Washington and British Columbia encompass such a large area, with so many breathtaking sights, cultural experiences and outdoor activities, it can be overwhelming. If you have been here before, you have some idea of what I’m talking about. And you probably have a pretty good idea of what you want to do the next…

Travel Roulette
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What the Heck is Travel Roulette?

BySusan Stephens

Okay, so you’ve decided that you want to take a vacation. A good one. A few days to get away from regular life. The need burns so great in you that if you don’t leave town soon, you’ll burst. What to do? Where to go? Maybe you don’t even care where you go, you just…

Smith Rock State Park
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Smith Rock State Park

BySusan Stephens

Smith Rock has held a mysterious fascination for me for many years. I worked for an outdoor travel clothing company that sold Smith Rock Tee Shirts before I ever knew that there was an actual Smith Rock in Oregon that inspired the name. It took me this long to finally visit one of the most…

Painted Hills
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Fossil, Oregon and the Painted Hills

BySusan Stephens

Deep in the high desert of central Oregon, past the tumbling tumble weeds and hovering hawks seeking out their prey…past the fragrant sagebrush and long forgotten ghost towns…lies fossils and vibrantly painted hillsides ancient and unique to Oregon. Digging for Fossils You heard me right. Fossils…to be found in the tiny town of Fossil. No…

Oregon's Covered Bridge
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Oregon’s Covered Bridges

BySusan Stephens

The covered bridges of ages past hold a romanticism, not unlike your local childhood soda shop, or the drive-in movie theatre just outside of town. Covered bridges are a cherished piece of Americana – taking a Sunday drive through one beckons images of simpler times. The Heyday of the Covered Bridge Many of these bridges…

Oregon Washington Road Trip
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The Joy of Road Trips in Oregon and Washington

BySusan Stephens

There’s nothing…I mean nothing more spiritually fulfilling than getting up at the crack of dawn on a summer’s day, getting in your car with a full tank of gas, and a grocery bag full of snacks. Grab a friend (or two, or three…) and hit the open road. A Pacific Northwest drive is the perfect…

The Lighthouses of the Oregon Coast
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The Lighthouses of the Oregon Coast

BySusan Stephens

**This post was updated July 23rd, 2024** What better way to map out the perfect road trip than to drive along the Oregon Coast and catch all of the lighthouses? From Astoria in the north to Brookings in the south, there are a total of eleven Oregon lighthouses in existence today. A few of them…

Willamette Valley Vineyards
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Take a Tasty Tour through Oregon’s Wine Country

BySusan Stephens

When people think of wine produced in the United States, most immediately think California’s Napa Valley. But just up the road is the fertile Willamette Valley of Oregon, which produces some of the world’s best wines, most notably Pino Noir, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay. While most wineries are open year-round, the most popular time of…