Salem and Portland

May 18th through 29th, 2026

We like most of the campgrounds we stay at, and we always find something good about the locations. This time in Salem, we didn't really care for our campground, but the town was nice. The drive from Klamath Falls was through mountain passes with snow next to the highway. It's not quite summer!

We went up to Portland for our first outing and to Fort Vancouver National Historic Site. We stopped at the McLoughlin House first, which was a nice diversion. There was a gentleman there doing a great job as a reenactor, but he talked without the possibility of interrupting him for a long time. We finally interrupted him to tell him we had to go, but not before we got a photo of him (he is very tall) with Monica (who is not very tall). His enthusiasm was admirable.

Next, we went to the other half of Fort Vancouver where most of the park was. It was a big site with large, green areas and gardens. It must be a great place for Portlanders to get away from the city by staying in the city. We walked around through the fort and drove around the grounds. We kept learning more about the Hudson's Bay Company, too. It was a lovely day followed by a nice lunch at The Grant House on site.

Our next voyage away from our site would be the first of a few extremely long day trips. We wanted to visit Mount Rainier National Park, but we couldn't find an easy way to stay nearby and not have to pick up and go too often. So, we opted for a long day of driving. We took Lacey with us so she wouldn't be alone too long in the motor home.

The line of cars to get into the park wasn't too long, and then we had a nice drive to the top. We even stopped at a roadside benefit for a local fire station for a lunch and some delicious cherries. Unfortunately, the wait was long enough that it made us later than we expected, and we got to the visitor center in time to buy a few things but not in time to see the park movie. It was okay, because the views and the day were both lovely.

We had yet another long trip in a different direction, to the coast to see Fort Clatsop, part of the Lewis and Clark National Historical Park. There was an absolutely beautiful and way-too-short walk to the fort, which was very small. We still had a nice time, no regrets.

On the way home we stopped in the fun little coastal town of Astoria. We ate at a nice restaurant with great food. We drove around a bit to check out the coastline and saw they have a trolley. It would be a great town for a vacation getaway.

It was almost time for us to head to Washington, but first we drove out to the country outside of Salem to milk cows! We went to the TMK Creamery and Distillery where we were able to join in the fun, milk cows, feed the calves, have some dinner, and pick up some vodka made from whey. Cool! We love these one-off experiences.

We really liked the town of Salem, but because we weren't a fan of our campground we were looking forward to moving on. We were back to the coast next, but this time in Washington. Thanks, Oregon, we'll miss you!