My family (me, my wife, and baby) recently moved to Portland from L.A. and have had the best time exploring the city and its surrounding suburbs. Every now and then I%26#39;ll be posting my thoughts on the city from someone who has only lived here all of 7 weeks now. When we were considering moving up here I would frequently search through the archived post for any descriptions of places, neighborhoods, restaurants, etc... All of the post really helped to give me an overall impression of the city and Oregon in general. Maybe someone considering moving here will find this post, or subsequent comments, beneficial.
This past week we made our first trip to the coast . It was only a day trip as we have done way too much traveling with our 11 month lately to have him spend another night in a hotel. Early Thursday morning we set out to visit both Astoria and Cannon Beach.
The drive is worth noting as it is stunning. From the picturesque farms and rolling hills, to the dense forest of Tillamook State Park the scenery was constantly changing and never boring.
We decided to visit Astoria first. My wife and I are both children of 70%26#39;s and 80%26#39;s and for many people of our generation Astoria holds a special place in their hearts. The movie ';The Goonies'; was filmed in Astoria, and we were told it was fun to visit all of the old locations. We had a blast. We actually took our picture in front of the ';Goonie House';, the owners of the home were very accomadating and actually invited us to take pix from their porch (we kindly declined). Aside from this, Astoria is home to an impressive tower which affords an amazing view and is decorated with murals depicting Oregon history. We didn%26#39;t climb the steps to the top, but the view from the top of the hill was good enough. The Victorian architecture of the town is worth a visit if your a fan of such things as we are.
Oh, on a side note, we stopped for breakfast at the Pig n%26#39; Pancake and had possibly the best bacon we have ever eaten. It%26#39;s a nice family restaurant, I would definitley visit again.
After spending the morning in Astoria it was off to Cannon Beach. Where do I begin? Cannon Beach is possibly the most beautiful little coastal town I have ever visited. I am from L.A. and have made the drive down PCH from San Francisco to L.A. many times and passed through countless towns. Cannon Beach beats them all. It has all of the beauty of Carmel or Newport Beach without any of the pretentiousness or snob like atmosphere that inundates those places. The downtown area was full of interesting restaurants, galleries, and shops, not just the typical chain stores which can be found in some communities. Also, there were children and families everywhere which gave it a homey feel.ing. The town makes a real effort to have a cohesive look, from the colors used in the businesses, to the flowers and gardens which seem to be everywhere you look. We really enjoyed just wandering through the shops and strolling along the beach. We ate lunch at a spot I highly recommend, I think it was called Ecola Fish Market and Restaurant. The clam chowder was delicious and the fried scallops we had were fresh and tasty. It is a little place, not a fancy cafe, that would be a good stop for those with small children who can be noisy at times. My sons howls went unnoticed and just added to the constant hustle and bustle of the place.
We have already decided that next summer we%26#39;re going to rent a small cottage and make a week at Cannon Beach a family tradition. I can%26#39;t recommend highly enough a visit here, my expectations were high and were absolutely surpassed!
Our first visit to the coast
Sounds like a very nice time, thanks for the report! I have a review of downtown Cannon Beach here with some photos of the gorgeous flowers that you will find there. We spent a nice rainy afternoon just strolling through the galleries and taking it slow. :)
Our first visit to the coast
I%26#39;m the other new transplant here and though we did a day trip to the beach, mostly Ecola State park and Cannon Beach, we are headed over for the weekend, to Astoria and Seaside, so thanks for your report!
Hi Lucero, I agree! Cannon Beach is really pretty , we are actually on our way there today!
Thanks so much for this report :)
Great idea to rent a place in the summer, when we lived in NY, we did that for years, my little ones learned to swim in the Bay :) and we have so many great memories ..
I look forward to reading more about your explorations of your new home .
Lucero--Nice to hear that you are enjoying OR so much:) Cannon Beach has been a favorite of ours for ages. I have not had the clam chowder at Ecola, but I like their fish %26#39;n chips. We usually just buy stuff there to bring back home. If you are interested in a great hotel to stay at there, try the Surfsand Resort. It is oceanfront, with great views of Haystack Rock, and great for families. Their cabana service is the only one on the OR coast, and they have all sorts of beach chairs/umbrellas/toys/kites for your use.
Like Mtngrl, Cannon Beach has been my favorite since I began going there in the late %26#39;60%26#39;s, when it was known as much as an artist community as it was a beach town. Whoever%26#39;s been running the town since those days is to be commended for its having retained the homey, cohesive look and feel you describe. But my fear is that the cat%26#39;s out of the bag, so enjoy it while you still can.
Ecola Seafood Market and Restaurant: Cannon Beach%26#39;s version of fast food. And it doesn%26#39;t get any better.
Hey Lucero. I%26#39;m just one more ex-Californian who discovered the northwest 11 years ago. Like you, I was just smitten. Growing up in CA you can%26#39;t imagine there is anyplace else you would want to live. But when I came up here, it was all just so beautiful with all the trees and water, farms and mountains, all so within reach of the cities. And the people are so much nicer. CA has gotten so unbelievably pretentious. I hope all of us coming here don%26#39;t change it too much!
%26lt;%26lt;CA has gotten so unbelievably pretentious. I hope all of us coming here don%26#39;t change it too much!%26gt;%26gt;
From this (almost) lifelong Oregonian, can I hear an ';Amen'; to that? ;-)
LOL mistletoe, well, you can always count on NYC transplants like the Yankee %26amp; I to filter the mix :D
Good news folks, a really obnoxious Californian who was planning to move here came for a visit, came back to CA and stated that ';all Oregonians are SOOOOO MEAN!'; She decided not to move here. When our family decided to move we thought it was really funny, since this particular person does not like us...so we were moving to Oregon where all the ';mean people'; live which probably made her happy. Maybe they were mean in reflection to how she was behaving!
LOL Chicogirl !
And don%26#39;t forget the Californians who Pretend they live in Oregon..There must be something here that appeals to California people..I know there is something here that appealed to a couple of NY people :)
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