Things to Do In Oregon City and Mt. Hood Territory

We spent the Fourth of July weekend in Oregon’s Mt. Hood Territory for some well-deserved communing with nature.  While only a half-hour’s drive away from the city of Portland, The Territory feels a world away with its small towns and a wide range of outdoor activities.  For our four-day visit to Mt. Hood Territory, we hiked, kayaked, and checked out fun and interesting things to do in Oregon City.

Hiking Trails

The main reason for our trip was to spend some quality time outdoors.  In Oregon’s Mt. Hood Territory there are plenty of hikes from which to choose.  Most of them can be found in Mt. Hood National Forest.  There are short hikes, long hikes, easy hikes, and difficult hikes.  We chose a mix of hikes that took us to lakes with views of Mt. Hood, a remaining section of the Oregon Trail, and a waterfall.  Another great place for hiking in The Territory is the Molalla River Recreation Corridor.  The Molalla River Trails System is a collection of 20 miles of trails through forests and fern groves.

Kayaking

During the summer months, ranger-led kayak tours are offered along Estacada Lake in Milo McIver State Park.  We’d never heard of a ranger-led kayak tour before.  Estacada Lake is the perfect spot for kayaking.  We paddled our way along the smooth water, sliding under shady trees, along the length of the lake down to the bridge and back.

McLoughlin Promenade

For a nice walk and views of Willamette Falls and the old abandoned mills along the river, follow the McLoughlin Promenade.  The McLoughlin Promenade was first constructed in 1938 as part of the Works Progress Administration project created by President Roosevelt in order to provide employment to unemployed Americans.  (Mt. Hood’s Timberline Lodge was also built as part of that project.)  However, the land for the promenade was first donated to be used as a promenade in 1851 by Dr. John McLoughlin.

Oregon City Municipal Elevator

The Oregon City Municipal Elevator is a 130-foot elevator that connects the upper McLoughlin neighborhood and promenade to the lower downtown Oregon City, making it the only "vertical street" in North America.  This is the second elevator in this spot as the first was built in 1915 and was water-powered.  The current elevator was completed in 1955 and has been added to the National Register of Historic Places.  The Oregon City Municipal Elevator is one of only four municipal elevators in the world.

Oregon City Main Street

While in the heart of Oregon City, Main Street offers a nice little stroll.  There are a number of restaurants, boutique stores, and craft beer and wine tasting shops.

We ate breakfast each morning at the Rivershore Bar & Grill to fuel up for our hikes each day, and each morning the restaurant was full.  It’s clearly a popular spot with the locals because there was even a bridal shower held on the deck.

Just across the street from the hotel is Clackamette Park which provides a walking trail along the river.

Sometimes when we tell people we are going on small trips like this to some random place in the US, they’re surprised because it isn’t exotic.  But every time we are reminded that little trips like this are so much fun.  Oregon is such a beautiful state with good food, good beer, good wine, good spirits, good hikes, and some of the best scenery.  A vacation doesn’t have to be exotic, far away, or expensive to be great.  We can see ourselves traveling to this part of Oregon again.

Thank you to Oregon’s Mt. Hood Territory for hosting our long weekend in Oregon City and The Territory and making this post possible.  As always, all opinions are our own.