Portland and Area Activities Planner and Newsletter - June 21, 2023

FESTIVAL OF BALLOONS
Summer is the perfect time for scenic activities like picnics, hikes, beach trips and maybe even hot-air balloon rides. In Oregon, you don’t have to travel far to see an impressive, picture-perfect display of your own. The Festival of Balloons in Tigard (a suburb 30 minutes southwest of downtown Portland by car) brings more than a dozen brightly colored, colossal hot-air balloons to the sky every June.

LAKE OSWEGO FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS
For more than 50 years, the Lake Oswego Festival of the Arts has proudly presented unique art exhibits including more than 600 local, national, and international artists. Visitors can also experience live music on two stages, performances, kids' activities, artist demos, and a variety of food. It’s free to the public (donations encouraged) and attracts thousands of festival-goers each year.  

EDGEFIELD BREWFEST
Join McMenamins for brew-tiful fun at Edgefield, to celebrate all things hoppy, malty, fruity and delicious! Raise a pint (or several) from a selection of the Pacific Northwest's finest craft beers and ciders, and cheers to a summer of vibrant fun. In between tastings, wander through the lush gardens and explore the quaint buildings on this historic property. Bring chairs and blankets, family, friends kids and even your dog for a wonderful treat of an afternoon with great brews and live music.

PORTLAND BEER WEEK
In Beervana, suds are celebrated every waking and drinking hour — but Portland’s PDX Beer Week takes that adoration for beer to the next level. Every June, PDX Beer Week features limited-edition brews, a lineup of events, and beer specials at bars and brewpubs citywide, overflowing with so much hop fever that the “week” spills into ten full days of thirst-quenching fun.

Special events like pairings, brewer’s dinners, seminars, neighborhood pub crawls, tap takeovers, and much more keep the beer and the fun flowing every year. Portland restaurants even get in on the PDX Beer Week celebration, often offering special beer-inflected products at local eateries.

BEAVERTON ESCAPE ROOMS
Beaverton Escape Rooms provides a thrilling, interactive adventure where 2-12 participants are locked in a themed room and have 60 minutes to discover hidden objects, gather clues, and solve puzzles to find the key to escape. It’s the perfect addition to a Tualatin Valley itinerary for visitors, team-building retreats and more.

CLACKAMAS KENNEL CLUB DOG SHOW
Our club was formed to further the advancement of all breeds of purebred dogs. To do all in its power to protect and advance the interests of all breeds of pure-bred dogs and to encourage sportsman like competition at dog shows and obedience trials.

ENCHANTED FOREST
The Enchanted Forest has been a destination for Oregon children since it opened in 1971. Generations of kids have slid down the creepy witch slide, delighted in the Crooked Man’s house, and ridden on the carousel. The Enchanted Forest is a theme park – there is a section with carnival rides and a haunted house – but what most people remember is the creative world contained in the paths and structures of the park. 

THE OREGON GARDEN
Home to Oregon’s garden city, Silverton is known for its natural beauty and stunning sights. Encompassing that small-town feel and hospitality, locals and visitors can feel right at home in Silverton. Take a stroll through Oregon’s breathtaking botanical garden in the heart of Silverton at The Oregon Garden. You will love visiting this majestic garden with a relaxing, magical escape full of nature’s finest offerings. Offering 80 acres and more than 20 specialty gardens to see and appreciate, there is something for everyone to enjoy of all ages.

PORTLAND ROSE FESTIVAL - LAST WEEKEND!
Every year for more than a century, the City of Roses has celebrated the city’s excellence with the Portland Rose Festival.Declared Portland’s official festival in 2010, the celebration includes more than 60 events, including parades, carnival rides, art shows, fun runs and more, starting in late May and ending in mid-June. The festival’s website has a full list of events and activities.

Portland is known as the City of Roses because the weather is ideal for growing roses, and it has several public gardens to prove it. Whatever you do during the Rose Festival, take time to smell the roses.

ROYAL ROSARIANS MILK CARTON BOAT RACE
A classic Rose Festival event and family-friendly community tradition dating back to 1973, the Milk Carton Boat Race is a spectacle you won’t want to miss. Children and adults race and show off their handmade, human-powered boats that float only employing recycled milk cartons and jugs. Creatively constructed watercraft will compete in nine categories, with one earning a place in history upon the coveted Best in Show Milk Can Trophy. 

PORTLAND TIMBERS VS VANCOUVER WHITECAPS - JUNE 21
Head to Providence Park to watch the Portland Timbers take on their rivals. Cheer with the Timbers' Army at Providence Park and become part of a Portland tradition.

OREGON FILM MUSEUM
The Oregon Film Museum celebrates the art and legacy of film and television production in Oregon.

The list of film, television, and other media productions in Oregon is stunningly long and impressive: Animal House, The Shining, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Sometimes a Great Notion, Twilight, Rooster Cogburn, Stand By Me, Mr. Holland’s Opus, Drugstore Cowboy, Maverick, Men of Honor, Paint Your Wagon, Pay It Forward, The Postman, The General, Indian Fighter, Portlandia, Grimm, Leverage, The Librarians, Coraline, and ParaNorman, to name a few. In fact, there are more than 400 major productions that Oregon provided the backdrop for.

STERNWHEELER RIVER TOURS
This once primary mode of transportation has become more of a fun commodity for tourism, as river cruise ships provide visitors a chance to get out on the water and take in the sights of their new surroundings. Oregon joined in on the trend in the early 1980s. Since then, several non-steam-powered sternwheel riverboats have been built and operated on major waterways in the state, primarily on the Willamette and Columbia Rivers in Marion County. Each is a fun ride for visitors and locals alike as they seemingly tug along and transport them to yesteryear.

Take your team to the next level: High Life Adventures also offers customized Team Building Programs to challenge your group while bringing them together as a team.

7 WONDERS OF OREGON; SMITH ROCK
If you enjoy scenic views of deep river canyons or rock climbing, Smith Rock State Park is the place for you. There are several thousand climbs in the park. More than a thousand are bolted routes. We also offer miles of hiking and mountain biking trails. Along your trip through the canyon, you might see golden eagles, prairie falcons, mule deer, river otter and beaver.

THIS WEEKS HIKE: FOREST PARK
At 5,100 acres (2,064 ha), Forest Park boasts more than 80 miles (129 km) of paths and is one of the largest urban forests in the United States. On any given day, you’ll find trail runners, dog walkers, families and outdoor enthusiasts enjoying every inch of Forest Park. With clearly marked trails and paths in every direction, you can explore this urban oasis from any of its 40 access points.

HIKE - MULTNOMAH FALLS TRAIL
Experience this 2.3-mile out-and-back trail near Bridal Veil, Oregon. Generally considered a moderately challengi...ng route, it takes an average of 1 h 30 min to complete. This is a very popular area for hiking, so you'll likely encounter other people while exploring. The trail is open year-round and is beautiful to visit anytime. Dogs are welcome, but must be on a leash.