Best Pacific Northwest Family Adventures Along Highway 97
Photo:
Items on display at the National Neon Sign Museum in The Dalles, Oregon
The Dalles, Oregon
Just a hop and a skip over the border to Oregon you’ll want to visit some of the attractions in The Dalles. The new National Neon Sign Museum lights up any visit with one of the largest displays of neon storefront signs in the world. All things sign-related can be found here from pre-electric to gold leaf and plastic.
The Columbia Gorge Discovery Center and Museum informs visitors about the Columbia Gorge’s history and the Lewis and Clark expedition. It also presents programs with live raptors and birds of prey on handler’s gloves.
A favorite view of mine happens at Rowena Plateau and the Tom McCall Preserve, a two-mile hike. As you stand on the bluff and look down at the Columbia River and the famous “Rowena Curves,” try to guess which car commercials were filmed driving that spirally span of road.
Travel another 80-ish miles south and dig for rocks like thundereggs at Richardson’s Rock Ranch in Madras, Oregon.
Eat: Cousins’ Restaurant & Lounge (where they'll call you “cousin”), Momma Jane’s Pancake House, Spooky’s Pizza Restaurant
Retreat: Cousins’ Country Inn, The Dalles Inn
For more ideas, visit: The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce
