I selected PDX Rafting for my company's summer retreat and we had the best day ever! I would…read morerecommend this company to anyone who likes having fun. I'm already mentally planning the next time I can raft with this company! Scott, the owner, is the friendliest person and makes you feel like part of the "rafting family" with his jokes and genuine care for each person in the party. Our raft guide, Jay, was 10/10 and made my entire trip unforgettable with all his knowledge of the Columbia Gorge and ability to create special experiences for our raft. If you want a company who believes in fun, adventure, and a great time -- this is the rafting company for you!

Disappointing and Astonishingly Unprofessional…read more If I could give zero stars, I would. I purchased a Groupon to go rafting with Portland Rafting, but when the booking directions on their website failed to accept the code, I called their customer service for assistance. What should have been a quick, exciting booking call turned into one of the most frustrating customer service experiences I've ever had. I was unfortunately met by someone named Scott, who claimed to be the owner. Given his unbelievable lack of professionalism, I find that hard to believe. From the second he answered, Scott made it abundantly clear that my call was an inconvenience to him. He was dismissive, uninterested in helping, and outright rude. When I calmly called him out on his attitude, instead of offering a standard professional response, he showered me with childish excuses: "Oh, well, it's just a busy morning" and "Oh, well, dude, it's not that big of a deal." Continually calling a paying customer "dude" and telling me to "chill out" is completely unacceptable. When I attempted to address the situation like an adult and requested a genuine apology for how I was being treated, he refused to take accountability. His actual response? "Not going to do that." It is disgusting to treat customers this way. If you are frustrated by honorably fulfilling Groupon vouchers, don't list your business on Groupon in the first place. More importantly, someone who lacks the basic maturity to handle a simple phone call should absolutely not be trusted with people's safety on the water. Save yourself the headache. There are plenty of reputable rafting companies in the area--take your business to literally anyone else.

We had an amazing afternoon with the team. Our guide ("Nacho"), and the rest of the staff did…read moreeverything to make it a safe and exciting adventure for the whole family. If you are looking for something fun to do - special occasion or not - with your teenage kids, I definitely recommend it. Combine it with dinner / ice cream in Hood River and you have a great day. I promise!

Well that was fantastic. The guides were great. I was given clear instructions to avoid doing…read moreanything stupid. I was given information to make a decision about going over a waterfall or not (I did!). Had a great time with my family. Go get tacos across the street steward afterwards. The only thing that could make this better is a hot tub. C'mon, Woody..... JACUZZI

I went on one of your first trips in 1972. It was Pacific High School class of '72, and we had a…read morefantastic time. I can't believe you are still going strong. Congratulations Mr. Lindford. Mr. Daly was my Social Studies teacher. You are the best of the best!

We just got back from a 3 night, 4 day family adventure with Echo on the Rogue River in Southern…read moreOregon. It was spectacular. The guides (Kaela, Laurie, Dustin, Mike and Nate) worked like dogs to make the trip safe, fun for kids and relaxing for the adults. There was coffee ready every morning. Delicious breakfast. Yummy lunch. Great dinners with plenty of beer, wine and sodas. Laurie, our "Food Dude," was even kind enough to bring along Pringles as a special request/treat for the kids. We ended up asking Echo to supply our tents and sleeping bags. I read the earlier review about a sandy tent, but ours were clean and in good condition. It made the trip all the more relaxing for our family to not have to worry about packing our camping gear. We just threw our clothes in a bag and were ready to hit the water. As an aside, my husband is a seasoned drift boater/rafter who has been on the Rogue (and many other rivers) on his own many times. He was hesitant about going on a guided trip, but was pressured into it by me - a mom who wanted some down time from cooking, prepping, etc. His one complaint was that he couldn't drink beer while on the river. Of course, this is a safety issue, so he gets it overall and enjoyed his time otherwise. I think it is a testament to the entire Echo team that he ended up having a great time and would love to travel with them again. If you are looking to take a trip on the Rogue (or Salmon!) River, I highly recommend that you consider Echo.

Our rafting trip got canceled last minute, so we called Big Mike to see if he could squeeze us in…read more Mike was super understanding and got us out on the water the next afternoon--which worked perfectly since we like to sleep in on vacation anyway. It ended up being just my wife and I on the boat with Mike and his wife, and we had a fantastic time. They were professional, funny, and made the whole trip enjoyable while helping us land a few fish. Both are extremely knowledgeable and went out of their way to make sure we had a great experience. Highly recommend fishing with Big Mike--just be ready to put up with a little Duck fan pride since he thinks they rule the Big Ten.

Been out with Mike a bunch of times. Mostly up above Bonneville. fishing can be difficult up there…read moreat times but with Mikes knowledge, local connections and some really awesome bait, my experience is that we catch fish and we have fun. Highly recommend this guiding service. I've also fished bouy 10 with him and the result was the same. We bonked fish. It blows me away with how well he knows so many different fisheries.

Best time for this hike is end of April and May when the wildflowers are in bloom and cover the…read morehillsides with purple widow's grass, yellow balsam root, blue lupine and lavendar bachelor buttons. It's my favorite time to be in this area! Best place to park is right before the Mosier Creek Bridge as you leave the tiny two block downtown area. As you begin the hike you come to the cemetery of the founding father's of this charming town. Continue for another 10 minutes to the falls and the swimming hole below. The falls are small, not like the 7 popular falls you see along the Old Historic Highway by Multnomah Falls, but still lovely. Continue on and up where views of the Columbia River from this vantage point are breathtaking. The river widens In this area and slight turns as it makes it's way through Mosier and onto Rowena making for a beautiful vista to take in and photo ops. Unlike at Rowena Plateau and Tom McCall Preserve, dogs are allowed on these trails.

Pretty fun trail with a variety of sites!…read more There's a small parking area right in town just on the other side of the bridge from where the trail begins. You can make a very short hike of it and just go to the falls. Or you can continue on from there and complete the approximately 3 mile out and back with a small loop at the top...I recommend the latter. There's nice signage at the start explaining some trail details. You'll pass by a cool, tiny cemetery and venture on to the falls. Mosier Falls was a bit more substantial than I'd expected, set in a pretty canyon with an overlook for your viewing pleasure. Should you wish to continue on the trail...and you really should...you'll start up the side of the hill on switchbacks and stairs to the top. Tiny flowers popping up were blanketing the entire hillside, and I'm guessing it'll be quite a show in couple of weeks. After zigging and zagging multiple times you'll reach the top and come to an overview with spectacular views of the gorge. There's a bench there should you need a little rest or just wish to sit and take in the view for a bit. From the viewpoint you'll see the dirt trail continue on. It meanders further down to the end of the line...a short loop that offers even more gorge views. The trail is quite narrow and fairly unshaded most of the way and there are regular signs warning hikers of private property lines. We enjoyed it on a Saturday morning, along with quite a few other hikers. It's a decent workout, a pretty waterfall, and some beautiful gorge views...not too shabby!

A lush, beautiful state park located off I-84 near Rowena. After passing by more times than I can…read morecount, I decided to venture off the highway to check it out. Was so surprised and delighted by the incredible views of the basalt cliffs across the way, and of course, close up views of the magnificent Columbia River. There is an area under the trees with picnic tables, a perfect spot to gather for a meal after a nice walk or hike. Plenty of parking, great views, peaceful and serene - a gem.

We pulled off recently to check out Mayer. In our camper van, it was a lovely, quiet spot to enjoy…read morea stretch and a meal. It seemed to be more like a county park in feel, with plenty of parking, some picnic tables, and toilets. They had a recycle bin alongside the trash cans...loved to see that. Albeit a cold December day, we only saw a couple of cars come and go while we were there. From signage it appears to be a good windsurfing area at other times of the year, so I'm sure it gets much busier. Nice little stop-off along the gorge for a view, a stretch, or a picnic.

I'm always grateful when I can get an indoor or outdoor swim and Hood River Aquatic Center provides…read moresummer. Typically covered pool, during the summer months they open a few panels to let the sunshine and warm air shine through. Oh, and the wind, too! It is Hood River so fierce winds are to be expected. You can do a Day pass for $5 or buy punch card of 10 swims for a discount, more of a discount if you live in Hood River and are a senior. Even though I'm from Portland, I purchased o e because I know it will get used. I'm in Hood River frequently - my Happy Place- even happier when I get in a swim. There are 4 lap lanes and 2 per lane, splitting rather than circle swimming, always a plus. There is a timer clock on each end making it super easy to know when you've accomplished your time or to see how quickly you are swimming. Lap lanes are usually available all day but always check their website for the most accurate info. A large play area is available for kids and families as well as an individual shallow pool. A few lounge chairs and lots of metal bleachers on the perimeter. You can also walk a few feet to an outdoor patio if you need more sun. I did! Needed to speed up my drying time after my shower. Locker rooms are typical, a few private showers and an open shower pit area. Staff is friendly. They were super helpful and informative when I called to inquire about usage and the same friendliness greeted me when I arrived. Happy to have discovered this pool and will be back! I have a punch card to use up!!!

I am so grateful for all the staff at HRAC. During this time with COVID, their jobs are more…read morestrenuous and they're under more pressure but they all have such positive attitudes. I swim here weekly, almost daily, and they keep the pool and locker rooms immaculate. I feel safe coming here! Thank you staff for taking COVID seriously and keeping everyone safe!

Moderate difficulty hike that's 5.4 miles from the North Bonneville Trailhead to Gillette Lake. I…read morerecommend looking up the trail on the gorgefriends.org website for directions and additional helpful info. You do have to pay to park at the trailhead unless you already have a Northwest Forest Pass (it's currently a $5 day-use fee to park if you don't have that pass). There's a couple pit toilets and picnic tables at the trailhead parking lot as well. The trail is dirt in some sections and loose gravel/rocks in others. There are sections of inclines as well, so along with the rocky sections of trail, some people may prefer to use trek poles for stability. The incline sections aren't too long and it's a good mix of up and down, so you don't get too winded of you're in relatively good shape. It's also a nice mix of shaded sections in the forest, and open areas in the sun. There's nice views of the surrounding area in the upper open sections and the lake itself is quite pretty. There aren't any benches at the lake, though, so plan on sitting on the ground, or bring your own camp chair, if you want to hang out at the lake a bit. There also isn't a lot of open shoreline, either, so keep that in mind.

This is a super easy hike. You follow the trail from the Bonneville dam trailhead for about 1/2…read moremile, until it connects with the Pacific Crest Trail. Hang a left, and it's 2 miles to Gillette Lake. The trail has a mix of Forrest, clear-cut, and rocky talus. While the clear-cut is a little depressing, it does allow for some nice views throughout the hike. You pass by another lake on the way to Gillette, and there is a nice stream just past the lake. You can continue up the Pacific Crest Trail for as long as you like. There is a decent little loop about 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile past Gillette lake. It's worth it if you want to add a few miles onto the hike. There is supposedly a viewpoint or overlook up this way, but we did not find it. The trail is fairly muddy if you hike in winter. But this is a nice alternative to many of the very hard hikes out here in the gorge. A great Sunday outing for the family. There is a fee to park, unless you have a Northwest forest pass or a Discover pass. I think the fee is five dollars. There are some pit toilets at the trailhead if you need that sort of thing.