Travel Oregon

If mid-summer heat waves get you down, perhaps it’s time for a cool retreat!

This week’s Grant’s Getaway promises a refreshing escape as I go aboard a small boat on a huge river. It’s the sort of adventure that may leave you feeling a million miles away from the city hubbub and noise in a sea kayak on the Columbia River.

Trying something new and risky takes courage, but if you’re convinced that it’s right for you, the risk can often pay off with unique adventures.

Safety is everything when Steve Gibons, owner of Scappoose Bay Kayaking, gathers paddlers together on the dock at Scappoose Bay Marina.

The first step: we slid into the cozy confines of the small cockpits of a smooth sided 14-foot long tandem sea kayak. We listened intently as Steve explained a basic rule of kayak recreation: First, a reassuring fact: more people tip over at the dock than any other place on the water – either getting in or out.”

Many of our fellow paddlers were like us – relative newcomers to the recreation and to this stretch of Multnomah Channel at Scappoose Bay. It’s a place where tide and weather can change in a heartbeat.

But on this gentle summer’s day, the bay and the nearby Columbia River were smooth and calm, so no need for us to worry. Instead, we used our time to practice the basic forward and reverse paddle strokes that Steve taught us – paddle strokes that we would soon put to good use.

Finding a comfort zone on the glassy water came easy on a day that was filled with summer’s glory – clear skies, a gentle breeze and outgoing tide to ease our downriver journey. More importantly, our small group of paddlers seemed to have the river all to ourselves on a stretch of Columbia River backwater that’s largely overlooked by most folks.

It is certainly that – and much more – a time and place where nature’s touch restores your soul.

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Most weeks, Grant McOmie travels into the great Oregon outdoors to find unique adventures but not so this week. Instead, he’s found his way into the heart of Portland where the natural world is alive and well. Grant visits a unique eco-pub where sustainability is king and where reduce, reuse and recycle provide the foundation of a thriving new business called the “HUB - Hopworks Urban Brewery.”

Folks come from all over to SE Portland’s 29th and Powell to sip a brew, dine with friends and relax in the knowledge that things are different in the newest neighborhood eco-pub.

The HUB is an eco-Pub and it’s a first on the SE Portland brew scene that’s built upon the practices of sustainability, organic ingredients and eco-friendly ideas. The business is the brainchild of Christian Ettinger, the HUB’s Brewmaster (he has fourteen years experience brewing beer,) and alongside his dad, Roy Ettinger, (a veteran architect of forty years experience) the team co-designed the nearly 17,000 square foot eco-pub.

Christian noted that the bones of the building, the old growth doug fir posts, beams and planks were solid, substantial and deserved new life. The old wood became the booths, bar and other varied pieces of furnishings in the HUB. And then there is Christian’s signature statement; scores of bike frames and old wheel rims that were incorporated above the bar and the booths of his pub.

“Every one of these frames was recycled and I’m only about 300 bucks into this – and it really sets the bar apart from anyplace around.”

Downstairs, you could say the same thing about the HUB’s brewery where pesticide-free and fertilizer-free ingredients are staples of the 10 crafted organic beers that the HUB produces each week. In the kitchen, organic ingredients take center stage too – from pizza dough to the sauces to the sandwiches with all the trimmings and more.

In fact, even the heat from the pizza oven is recycled and circulated to heat the heat the pub’s water. “That’s free heat,” said Christian. “Free heat is free energy and lowers our bills but it also lowers our needs to bring in fossil fuels.”

The Hub is one of just three Oregon breweries – out of 80 statewide – that have made the move to produce all organic beer. The folks who work at the HUB are eager to share and explain all of the different ways that they walk the talk of sustainability. So, stop in and enjoy a beer and strike up a conversation! The folks at HUB will be pleased to tell their story - it’s that sort of a friendly, neighborhood place.

To find other Oregon breweries, click here, and select ‘Breweries’.

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If a community’s wealth can be measured by its wildness, Washington County must be one of the richest places around.

That’s especially true at two wildlife areas: Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve near Hillsboro and the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge near Sherwood.

Both sites are wonderful examples of the adage: if you build the habitat, the wildlife will come and stay and thrive.   People come to visit too because both areas offer exciting Walks on the Wild Side, that are close to home and yet a million miles away from the city hub-bub, pavement and noise.

What you may enjoy the most is how easy each of these wildlife areas is to reach from any corner of the Portland-Metro region.

Wildlife can be seen along the hiking trails at every turn: from a solitary eagle perched on watch, scurrying shorebirds probing muck of the marshes or v-shaped flocks of geese winging their way from this place to that.

Both wildlife areas are getaway escapes that you’ll be eager to explore – from the rush of city life to the rush of wings.

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