Portlandia

Yup, Portland has a pretty unique culture, but after living in Colorado, it doesn’t feel that much different than Boulder. In fact, the outdoor culture and liberal perspective felt the most like home since we left.

Ryan’s uncle, who has been living in the city for the past 13 years, served as our tour guide for not only Portland, but the surrounding area, including the Cascade Gorge and Mount Hood loop. He went out of his way to be sure we got a true taste of the culture, including organizing an Italian festival downtown and a huge relay race from Mount Hood to the Coast to thoroughly impress us. 

The bacon maple bar at right is one of Voo-Doo's most famous creations.

 Ok, maybe that was just good timing, but nonetheless, Ryan and I were grateful to be shown around and experience as much as we could, since the Pacific Northwest is quickly becoming a top prospect for a place to one day live. Some highlights of the visit included authentic Italian cuisine, the notorious Voo-doo Donuts, clear blue vistas of the Columbia River, hand-numbing mountain biking, alpine slide racing, and Ghirardelli brownies. Oh and I turned 23. It was a pretty full couple days, but Ryan and I enjoyed every minute of it, and hopefully our tour guide did too.

The adventure park at Skibowl in particular was quite memorable.

Mountain biking at Colorado’s ski resorts is very similar to what we did in Oregon, except in Oregon, we discovered fern diving. This phenomenon is the result of physics and gravity, typically when you have too much speed and a tight turn throws you head first into the ferns. Hence, “fern diving.” All of us took spills at one time or another, or several times in one rider’s case (ehm Ryan). In our defense though, there seems to be a bit of a disconnect in how the trails are labeled on the mountain. We managed one double black trail called “cannonball” with only some close fern calls, so then we dared to try “fire hydrant,” ignoring not only the signs saying experts only, but also the body board at the head of the trail.

Big mistake. When the trail involves four foot drops from cliff faces, ferns aren’t going to be enough to stop your dive. We submitted to bike hiking instead, and you can see a tidbit of what the trail looked like in the video below (click here if video does not load). There was a treat at the end of the trail though, a fun play park with wooden boards reminiscent of Copper Harbor that I thoroughly enjoyed. Ryan, on his giant 29 inch wheels, is still unsure what he thinks of trails on stilts though. Even Ryan’s Uncle had a harrowing experience riding a separate trail, (he’s not as stupid as us). Apparently the ferns deserted him and he went boulder diving instead, landing quite the battle scar on his outside knee.

Thoroughly humbled, we decided to switch to the alpine slide instead, to mend our wounded pride. The slide featured two identical tracks, one dubbed “scenic” and another “experienced.” We decided they were far better suited for races.

Ryan was a bit timid at first, since he kept using the brake incorrectly and almost flinging himself from the slide when he pushed down and accelerated rather than pulling up to brake. Once he figured it out though, he creamed his uncle and me easily. Five rides down the slide were enough to leave us all laughing and rosy-cheeked from the wind. 

Overall, Ryan and I were quite enchanted with the city and Mount Hood. The wooded hills and powerful Columbia River provide ample opportunities for recreation, and the city felt small, but progressive. Portland might have its own unique culture, but Ryan and I could very well see ourselves adopting it in the future, should job opportunities allow. Or maybe we’ll just be one of those young adult retirees. ;)