Well, we even have those disgusting donuts here. :)

Actually the little voodoo men are good.

If I was homeless and living in Wisconsin or Michigan, I’d make a B line for California. The homeless aren’t stupid, why should you freeze in the winter when you could live in Cali (or Portland).

Not exactly warm in Portland right now...snow predicted tonight.

You gotta be pretty intrepid to be homeless around here. I knew of a homeless woman who literally lived year round in a cardboard box under the boardwalk along the river.

She was a nice energetic lady. Then one day something in her brain broke.

Blue Star donuts are tons better than Voodoo's!

Yep, we are bordering on having homeless towns.

Hmmm, I'm going to Portland next month... mainly for hiking and scenery, but I do know I'll be potentially eating at a few places like Screen Door and Tasty & Sons... not sure if I can stomach the hours long wait for food though.

Most waits are nothing. Check out online reviews. Screen door is fine, nothing spectacular. The food in Portland really is outstanding. Cheap too.

Don't believe you need to wait for anything in Portland. Don't dress up either.

If I were planing on being homeless (I'm not) I would head to Hawaii.

Portland is great but the winters are not warm or dry.

Are you planing on going up the gorge (along the Columbia river)? If not you should, couple of nice restaurants and pubs in the town of Hood river.

^^^^ Also, there is great hiking in the Gorge, not far from PDX. I don't know how the fires affected vegetation and access, but over by Multnomah Falls we would go hiking. There was one loop (look up Horseshoe Falls) where we'd see 3 or 4 waterfalls, including one where the trail goes behind the waterfall. Then we'd head over to the Lodge at Multnomah Falls for Sunday brunch.

Also some hikes out by Mt Hood, but then you have to drive 60-90 min to get there.

The Eagle Creek fire affected access greatly, and hiking in the gorge is severely curtailed. You WILL be fined if you're caught in the forbidden zones and there's a pretty good chance you will be caught. People who live in the gorge and the authorities are not taking this issue lightly.

If you hike or ski on Mt Hood, make sure you get your access pass.

And, if you're in Hood River on the weekend, be prepared to sit in traffic while you circle around looking for a place to park.

(It's not as much fun to live in the Portland area as it used to be.)

I'm planning on going to the gorge, will be at Mt Hood. I actually have a lot of hikes planned, but I will not be able to do them all in one weekend. I know many hikes are also closed for winter or due to the fire.

Some of the hikes and places I've got planned to visit are:
Cleetwood Cove Trail
Garfield Peak
Crater Lake
Toketee Falls
Cannon Beach
Hay Stack Rock
Multnomah Falls
Bridal Veil Falls
Elowah Falls
Mt Hood
Sahalie & Koosah Falls
Ponytail Falls
Lookout Mountain to High Prarie Trailhead
Abiqua Falls Trailhead
The Grotto
Portland City Grill

I'll probably be picking and choosing my list here. If anything is a must visit, or if you have any other suggestions, please let me know! I will also have to make it to Tualatin to visit a old friend.

Ahh yes, the lady friend did mention something about seeing a few waterfalls on a trail, I'll do some more investigation! I don't mind the driving too much, but if it's horrible like being in Los Angeles, that may change things! Thanks for the suggestions, and if there's any must see places, feel free to post them!

Yikes, Looks like I'll have to get to Hood River at Sunrise and hope for the best! Yeah, I know the fires closed a whole bunch of access to trails so that was a bummer. Hopefully I'm able to check out some of the other places when I come back next time. Are there any less popular hiking areas where I can get away from the tourists in Portland still?

Yes. :)

Note he said "on the weekend", it has been 8-9 years since my last visit but I think if you can visit the town of Hood River mid-week it will probably be not as crowded.
There are (were) some very nice restaurants and pubs in and around the town.

Yeah, unfortunately I will be going this as a weekend getaway this time. Best thing I can do is get there early as possible!

In that case you might want to skip Hood river, if you haven't already PM
herr_oberst. Portland is surrounded by forest there are bound to other less popular but just as beautiful places to go hiking.

There is a nice hike on a little peninsula that sticks out into the ocean a little south of Tillamook. I can't remember the name of it.

Also, for eating: Pok Pok!!

Hmmm, could it be Bayocean Peninsula Park near Cape Meares Lighthouse?

I remember having Pok Pok on the food list! I'm allergic to seafood though, so I'd probably have to pass on their wings.

The coast is about a two hour drive, just saying.