Finalizing plans! Leaving approx June 26th. Ideas appreciated. We like State Parks/natural campgrounds where possible but I know some may now be unavailable. Towing 30ft TT. 3 boys ages 6,12,14. Husband would like some fishing from the surf or pier ideally (not boat)..some easy to moderate hikes. Good food. Good people :)1. Santa Cruz to Fort Bragg (MacKerricher State Park???) 2 nights.2. Fort Bragg to somewhere near the CA/OR border, but we have Redwoods here so not desperate to spend time in N.CA Redwoods. 1 or 2 nights.3. Oregon Sand Dunes area. Stay near ATV rental place, Florence?? 2 nights.4. Portland. 3 nights. Campground. Or we may have a house swap (we do these often) and put TT somewhere cheap?4. ***Will have about 10-12 Days for the WA part of the trip****Best route from Portland, and areas to spend nights with the TT to see highlights of Olympic NP, Mt Rainer, Columbia River Gorgeand then south to Bend? before heading down to CA via Bend, Crater Lake, Lassen Volcanic..

Can you reverse your plan? The coast is better viewed north to south. That way all the turn outs and sites are on your right. License fees will kill you once you find out how much they can be even for a dayStarting near Astoria, Ft Stevens state park is a good stsrting place. Lots of scenery, things to see and do. Your close to Ft Clatsup which is where Lewis and Clark wintered in 1805/6. Ft Stevens is a historic military fort thst guarded the mouth of the Columbia. It is also the only place on mainland US that was shelled during WWII. Gun placements that,you can tour. Further down the coast there is Beverley beach SP, but basically any of the state parks will offer great experiences. Be sure to firm up your plans and get reservations soon. It may already too late, but do it quick.US97 in Central Oregon is a totally different experience. So plan accordingly.Forget Portland, it is just another big city with lots and,lots of homeless living everywhere.

BTW you asked almost the exact same question back in November. Wernt you happy with the results of that thread?

Florence - Honeyman State Park, Thousand Trails/Encore but not sure on the non-member rentals. http://torexatvrentals.com is just a little south of these parks. The older boys will have a blast on the quads, the younger will likely have to go on a two seater. Also rvparkreviews.com list a couple that are fairly good. Little Brown Hen for breakfast. Hole-in-the-wall but good food and plenty of it, but tad spendy and cash only ATM on site. On main drag near first light north of bridge.Champoge State Park between Salem and Portland.Collier State Park and the free logging museum.Lava Tubes, and Lava Lands area.

Hi, thanks for the replies. I was happy with answers back in Nov, and they helped me narrow down the plan mentioned here......We did consider driving the other way around until I read that Bumpass in Lassen Volcanic NP doesn't open until at least after July 4th, and we would have got there about 10 or so days before and would like to see that. I guess tips especially on the WA part of the trip needed most now. And we do want to visit Portland, we like a few days in a city as well as time with nature :) And yes, the boys will love the ATV's!! excited about that :)

donn0128 wrote:Can you reverse your plan? The coast is better viewed north to south. That way all the turn outs and sites are on your right. Starting near Astoria, Ft Stevens state park is a good starting place. Lots of scenery, things to see and do. Further down the coast there is Beverley beach SP, but basically any of the state parks will offer great experiences. Be sure to firm up your plans and get reservations soon. It may already too late, but do it quick.US97 in Central Oregon is a totally different experience. So plan accordingly.Forget Portland, it is just another big city with lots and,lots of homeless living everywhere.X1 on Portland!!! Portland is a nightmare driving in just a car with constant congestions and back ups. Towing a trailer around Portland would be a nightmare for me IMHO. I would park my RV in Sea Side Oregon near Hwy. 26 and the just in your truck to see Portland. Look at Circle Creek RV park, do not use any of the other RV parks in the area. State parks in Oregon can be a nightmare as far as reservations, especially during the summer months when all the kids are out of school.

CA to WA questions | Good Sam Community

jukes
Explorer
Jan 19, 2018
Hi, thanks for the replies. I was happy with answers back in Nov, and they helped me narrow down the plan mentioned here......
We did consider driving the other way around until I read that Bumpass in Lassen Volcanic NP doesn't open until at least after July 4th, and we would have got there about 10 or so days before and would like to see that.
I guess tips especially on the WA part of the trip needed most now.
And we do want to visit Portland, we like a few days in a city as well as time with nature :)
And yes, the boys will love the ATV's!! excited about that :)
RedRollingRoadb
Explorer
Jan 19, 2018
Florence - Honeyman State Park, Thousand Trails/Encore but not sure on the non-member rentals.
http://torexatvrentals.com is just a little south of these parks. The older boys will have a blast on the quads, the younger will likely have to go on a two seater.

Also rvparkreviews.com list a couple that are fairly good.

Little Brown Hen for breakfast. Hole-in-the-wall but good food and plenty of it, but tad spendy and cash only ATM on site. On main drag near first light north of bridge.

Champoge State Park between Salem and Portland.

Collier State Park and the free logging museum.

Lava Tubes, and Lava Lands area.
donn0128
Explorer II
Jan 19, 2018
BTW you asked almost the exact same question back in November. Wernt you happy with the results of that thread?
donn0128
Explorer II
Jan 19, 2018
Can you reverse your plan? The coast is better viewed north to south. That way all the turn outs and sites are on your right. License fees will kill you once you find out how much they can be even for a day
Starting near Astoria, Ft Stevens state park is a good stsrting place. Lots of scenery, things to see and do. Your close to Ft Clatsup which is where Lewis and Clark wintered in 1805/6. Ft Stevens is a historic military fort thst guarded the mouth of the Columbia. It is also the only place on mainland US that was shelled during WWII. Gun placements that,you can tour. Further down the coast there is Beverley beach SP, but basically any of the state parks will offer great experiences. Be sure to firm up your plans and get reservations soon. It may already too late, but do it quick.
US97 in Central Oregon is a totally different experience. So plan accordingly.

Forget Portland, it is just another big city with lots and,lots of homeless living everywhere.

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