One Last Oregon Adventure: Waterfalls, Roses, and the Road to Portland
From the dry landscapes of Central Oregon to towering waterfalls, a garden full of roses, and one final memorable meal, our last day turned into an adventure of its own.
Leaving Central Oregon Behind
After a week exploring Central Oregon, it was finally time to head toward Portland and our flight home.
We had based ourselves in Powell Butte, explored Bend and Redmond, visited Crater Lake, wandered through volcanic landscapes, and eaten some truly memorable meals. There had been a few disappointments along the way, but that's part of traveling. Not every stop needs to be spectacular to make the trip worthwhile.
If you've been following our journey, it began with A Week in Central Oregon: Why We Chose Powell Butte Instead of Bend, where we explained why we decided to stay outside the region's busiest tourist center.
But Oregon wasn't finished with us yet.
Our final drive would take us away from the high desert and into an entirely different landscape. We had waterfalls to visit, roses to admire, and one more restaurant to try before heading to the airport.
And as it turned out, the drive itself was part of the experience.
The Road to Portland Is Part of the Adventure
One of the things I enjoy about a road trip is watching the landscape change.
Central Oregon had given us volcanic rock, wide-open spaces, and snow-covered mountains. Heading toward Portland, the scenery gradually shifted again.
The Columbia River Gorge brought steep cliffs, enormous stretches of water, and mountains that looked nothing like the landscape we'd been exploring just a short time earlier.
There were sections where simply looking out the window was enough entertainment.
We weren't just trying to get to Portland. We wanted to enjoy what was between us and the airport.
Horsetail Falls: A Beautiful Stop Along the Gorge
Our waterfall adventures included Horsetail Falls, one of those places where Oregon seems determined to show off.
The waterfall drops down a steep, rocky cliff into a pool below, with moss, greenery, and overhanging leaves surrounding the scene.
After spending much of the week in Central Oregon's comparatively dry landscapes, the contrast was striking.
This was the lush, green Oregon that so many people picture when they think of the Pacific Northwest.
Horsetail Falls is also a reminder that you don't always need an elaborate excursion to appreciate a place. Sometimes a scenic stop and a few minutes enjoying the surroundings are enough.
Multnomah Falls: Sometimes the Famous Places Really Are Worth Seeing
I'll admit that famous tourist attractions can be a gamble.
Sometimes they're famous because they're genuinely extraordinary. Other times, you arrive and wonder what all the excitement was about.
Multnomah Falls belongs firmly in the first category.
At approximately 620 feet in total height, it's one of Oregon's most recognizable natural landmarks. The upper waterfall drops 542 feet, while the lower section adds another 69 feet, separated by the iconic Benson Bridge.
And seeing it in person is something else entirely.
The waterfall towers above the surrounding forest, plunging down the cliff face before passing beneath the bridge and continuing toward the lower pool.
You can see photographs of Multnomah Falls all day long, but they don't quite capture its scale.
The bridge provides a wonderful sense of perspective. People standing on it look tiny against the waterfall behind them.
Our visit also came with bright sunlight filtering through the trees. That made some photographs challenging, but it created a beautiful atmosphere around the falls.
If you're planning a visit, check the U.S. Forest Service's Multnomah Falls information for current access conditions, parking arrangements, and seasonal requirements. Depending on when and how you arrive, timed-use permits may apply.
For us, this was absolutely a worthwhile stop.
🟢 Go for it! Multnomah Falls deserves its reputation. Even if you've seen countless photographs, standing there and taking in the scale of it is a different experience.
Portland's International Rose Test Garden: A Different Kind of Oregon Beauty
After the waterfalls, we had another stop in mind.
Portland is known as the City of Roses, and we wanted to visit its famous International Rose Test Garden.
Now, I'll happily spend time looking at mountains, waterfalls, and unusual rock formations. But a garden full of roses?
That might not sound like the most adventurous stop on a road trip.
Then you start walking among the flowers.
The variety is remarkable. There are roses in delicate shades of pink, bold reds, warm oranges, and combinations of colors that almost don't look real.
Some blooms are perfectly formed. Others have petals curling in every direction, creating completely different shapes and textures.
And once you start examining individual flowers, it's surprisingly easy to lose track of time.
We found ourselves stopping repeatedly to photograph roses that caught our attention. Just when we thought we'd seen our favorite, another one appeared around the corner.
The garden is located in Portland's Washington Park, and admission is free. You can find visitor details through Portland Parks & Recreation.
After a week of dramatic scenery, this was a wonderful change of pace.
🟢 Go for it! You don't need to be a gardening enthusiast to appreciate the International Rose Test Garden. It's a beautiful place to wander, and it costs nothing to enjoy.
One Last Meal: Discovering Burmese Food in Portland
By this point, we'd spent the week making a deliberate effort to try different restaurants and different foods.
We'd enjoyed some excellent meals around Bend, Redmond, and Sisters, including our first experience with Nepalese cuisine at High Camp Taphouse.
That meal had become one of the highlights of our entire trip, as we discussed in Eating Our Way Around Bend and Redmond: The Hits, Misses, and Surprises.
So why abandon that approach on our final day?
In Portland, we stopped at Top Burmese Burma Joy.
We ordered spring rolls and samosas, then shared roasted garlic noodles with chicken.
Everything was delicious.
The spring rolls and samosas made a great start, and the roasted garlic noodles were exactly the sort of dish that makes me glad we didn't settle for something familiar.
We also found convenient paid street parking, which is always a welcome bonus when visiting a restaurant in an unfamiliar city.
This was another reminder of something we try to practice when traveling: don't overlook a restaurant simply because the cuisine is unfamiliar.
You might discover something you love.
🟢 Go for it! Top Burmese Burma Joy was a terrific final dining experience and another example of why we enjoy trying different cuisines when we travel.
One Last Look at Oregon
Eventually, every vacation reaches that moment when the sightseeing ends and the airport takes over.
We made our way to Portland International Airport, returned to the familiar routine of airline travel, and prepared to head home.
But Oregon had one last view waiting for us.
From the airport, we could see snow-covered Mount Hood rising in the distance beyond the aircraft and terminal.
It was a fitting farewell.
We'd started the week exploring the volcanic landscape of Central Oregon, with mountains dominating the horizon. Now, as we prepared to leave, another magnificent volcano was there to send us off.
Looking back, what stands out most about this trip isn't any single attraction.
It's the variety.
In one vacation, we experienced snowy mountain scenery, ancient volcanic landscapes, waterfalls, high desert, lakes, small towns, unusual restaurants, local breweries, and a garden filled with roses.
And we did it without constantly changing hotels or turning every day into a race against the clock.
That's exactly the kind of travel we enjoy.
Oregon gave us plenty of reasons to return. But for this trip, Mount Hood provided the perfect final image.
Explore More of Our Oregon Adventures
Our final drive was just one chapter of a much larger Oregon adventure. Explore the rest of the journey in A Week in Central Oregon: Why We Chose Powell Butte Instead of Bend, and for our individual recommendations and experiences, visit Oregon Travel Reviews.