Awesome day with a picnic lunch and great friends. Wonderful way to spend the day. We visited after…read morestopping at Vista House.

With sailing, fishing, camping, picnicking, and where the Sternwheeler cruises begin and end, the…read moreCascade Locks Marine Park is the perfect place to enjoy the more beautiful views of the Columbia River. Park amenities include a children's playground, open lawns, picnic tables, clean public restrooms, a gravelly beach, boat launch ramp, and marina. We often drive out to just sit and watch the windsurfers, various birds and boats go in and out. Unique views of the Bridge of the Gods is just downriver too. The Marine Park offers a variety of indoor and outdoor venues for special events for groups of 5 to 500. Such a nice place for a birthday party, baby shower, family reunion or even a wedding. Make sure to tour the Historical Museum while you're there and see the first steam locomotive of the Oregon Territory, the Oregon Pony. The Marine Park also serves as the meeting and launching point for the Columbia Gorge Racing Association's sailing events, and racing takes place in the waters upriver from the beach at the east end of the Park. Check their webpage for next year's Regatta in July. This is world-class sailboat racing in a world-famous big wind venue and not to be missed. Many professional sailors say it's "the best place in the world to sail."

Great hike good views to get to the punch bowl water fall took about a hour and a hour to get back…read morebut you can keep walking after that fall if you like longer hikes o recommend going early to find parking

Eagle Creek is now on my top 10 of hikes of all time…read more SO many waterfalls on one trail :') AND I didn't even get to see all of them! I did the 10 miles round trip to Tunnel Falls, and boy, was it well worth it. It was mostly flat with some twists and turns, gradual inclines, and narrow walkways. Good thing I had snacks, a lunch wrap, and a smoothie because that helped me get through! If you're up for it, this is a MUST! Btw it's salmon spawning season, and you can see all of the salmon swimming upstream at the very start of the trail. So cool!

We stop here every time we visit Hood River - our kids love to play here. There is plenty of…read moreparking, the location is right in town, and the playground is in great shape. We'll be back!

One of the coolest parks I have seen for children. The large castle structure is the first thing…read morethat catches your attention and draws you in. But there is so much more! Swings, slides, jungle gym, tires, play houses, tunnels - you name it, it's there. Even a decent bathroom. Parking lot is somewhat small but there is also street parking. Part of the City of Hood River public park system, this is a fabulous place for your children to play, run and have fun!

So glad we stopped here! Parking is $10 and the switchbacks go on and on but 100% worth it! Enjoy…read morethe views along the way and the engineering feat to creating the switchbacks. Don't rush to the top so many wonderful overlooks along the way that are even better than the top. Dog friendly but slightly tricky with the narrow sidewalks.

Amazing hikes & views at the park. Beacon Rock Trail, that goes up to the top of the rock, is well…read moremaintained and had gorgeous views the whole way up. Even the drive through the Gorge to get to the park is amazing. I would absolutely recommend visiting! Only issue I ran into was that the parking payment meter in the parking lot was broken and I had to buy a pass online and write the info on a scrap piece of paper like the taped-on signage on the meter said. Many over grown blackberry bushes, but they were not a problem.

Never disappoints. Winter is less touristy but the water Colin is much better to make more and…read morebetter waterfalls. There are spots with warnings of slides, beware and respect them - don't risk your safety. I even found still maturing blackberries that are bright red in mid December! And a bunch of cute looking mushrooms. The air is amazing. The gorge view is breathtaking and never gets old. Love it.

One of many great places to pull off the 84 and see waterfalls...but here you can park and easily…read morewalk to 3 in no time. Do yourself a favor and make this stop when heading east...otherwise you'll be loons like us and have to go past, come back east, and then east again in order to head back west. Worth the out-of-the-way loop? Yes! 3 nice falls for literally anyone with any walking ability. There's a decent sized lot, as well as restrooms. Starvation Falls is right there, just steps away from the lot. Head up the trail westward and you'll hit both Cabin Creek and Hole in the Wall Falls before you know it. I didn't time it exactly, but if you've got 30 mins I'm sure you can take it all 3. Each falls has its own character and gorgeous setting, as well as picnic tables at Starvation. Yes, ANOTHER stop along the 84 to see waterfalls. There are a couple others nearby should you have a bit more time to hike, but a short stroll gets you a sweet pic times 3!

Much windier here. Stopped by after having lunch nearby. There's plenty of parking. Saw many…read morefamilies and people flying kites & a surfing. There are restrooms. Nice park to just enjoy the water & people watch.

Known as the 'Windsurfing Capital of the World', Hood River is a small city in Oregon, on the banks…read moreof the Columbia River. It is known for its concentration of craft breweries in the downtown area, and the ability to consume alcohol publicly on open sidewalks and parks. My wife, mother-in-law, and I drove intentionally to see the city during our visit to the Gorge, and stopped by the famous Park next to the River. It was drizzling and cold this day, so finding free street parking was easy. We found a place to sit, and admire the brave souls surfing. There is a small beach area, and children life jackets to share. And a nice grassy area with playground equipment.

It is such a beautiful and scenic drive each and every time going through the Columbia River Gorge!…read moreIt's something I never tire of and there are so many things to go see both on the Oregon and Washington side of the Gorge. One of the most notable places to stop is Multnomah Falls. It's a highly popular place and it is certainly understandable as to why but it is best to go early. You may even need to look into getting a reservation in order to get a parking space as well... because yes... it is actually that popular all year round. There are so many cute little towns through the Gorge as well. Hood River is a favorite of ours and I believe it's a favorite for a lot of people but Cascade Locks is nice as well and the Washington side has cute towns as well. On the Oregon side is Interstate 84 but don't explore this Interstate or route as a quick, brisk route to get east to west (or vice versa) as you cannot go typical Interstate speed through the Gorge. The curvature of the road and through this long stretch simply doesn't allow you to do that so it would be worth looking into alternate routes as possible if quickness is the only thing in mind otherwise you kind of just have to endure the reduced speeds. The Columbia River itself one doesn't have to repeat how beautiful it is but it's understandable if you do. River activities never fail to mesmerize. Like the group of people we once saw sailing down the river with boogie boards ( perhaps there's another name for it I'm not in the know with that) and the almost other worldly appearance of numerous fisherman on boats once fishing season was in full swig in the early morning. It's something one can never get tired of, The Columbia Gorge and I enjoy it each and every time I drive through it. It's breathtaking and truly one of essential drives to partake if visiting Oregon.

This area is an absolute must see if you are in the Portland area. It is really gorgeous. We drove…read moreto the visitor center and from there hiked up toward Multnomah Falls. It is a great way to get your steps in while surrounded by nature at its finest. There a number of waterfalls in this area and if you don't have time to get out and hike, there are some that can be seen from your car while driving by. We spent most of a day driving and hiking to the waterfalls using a map we got from the visitor center. It was raining during our visit, but we still got to see some beautiful scenery. There's a restaurant at Multnomah Falls Lodge in case you are looking for a place for lunch while in the area.

Great park and playground. Beautiful grounds, though lawn around playground needs a little love but…read morelooks like it's coming back. The sprinkles do hit sections of the playground but personally I think it's great because it washes everything down. We stopped here on our travels to let the toddler play and stretch his legs and we had just as much fun on the playground, really fun and creative structures. Definitely will be a future stop again.

Nice park with fabulous views…read more We dropped by Sorosis this weekend, looking for somewhere new to stretch the legs. It's a lovely drive up, and you get amazing views of the gorge from the lot. There's plenty of parking around, and it appeared that the park has a little something for everyone: ball fields, play ground, disc golf, green space, and a walking path around the perimeter. You're not going to get a hike in here, but a spot to stretch it's got. The grounds looked clean and it appeared there were some improvements in the works. Nice, peaceful park. :)

With Horsethief Butte as the scenic backdrop, this lake is a relaxing spot for fishing & kayaking…read more Equipped with bathrooms & showers, a popular place for camping & RV sleepovers. Not naturally formed, flooded into existence by the Dalles Dam. Without a natural circulation of water, the summer creates toxic algae harmful to humans and fish. Warning signs are posted. A petroglyph trail is a highlight for all; in depth tour guide available by reservation. Boat launch access to the Columbia River.

Lovely piece of the Gorge. We've stopped by the lake portion and checked out the Petroglyphs before…read morewhile passing through, as well as briefly jumping onto a trail at the Butte. This weekend we got around to investing more time in the trails of Butte and it was pretty fun. The trails don't allow for a complete loop around the rock, as there's a block for restoration on the east side. But you can wander most of the way around the water side...up and around the rocks is really where's it at though. There are 3 access points to the top from the trails, and the bouldering up is loads of fun. Once atop you can roam all about and enjoy fabulous views from every angle. While the remainder of the trails at Butte are average, we found it pretty entertaining to climb around the rock portion. There's a decent amount of parking...Discover Pass required...as well at a vault toilet at the trailhead.