Pit Stop: Hood River, Oregon
Explore the breathtaking beauty of the Columbia River Gorge and discover why Hood River, Oregon is one of the Pacific Northwest’s top destinations for outdoor adventure, scenic drives, and unforgettable RV travel experiences. In this episode, we take you along the mighty Columbia River as we explore the landscapes, history, and activities that make this region a must-visit stop for travelers exploring Oregon.
Stretching approximately 85 miles from the confluence of the Columbia and Deschutes Rivers to the Portland area, the Columbia River Gorge offers dramatic cliffs, powerful waterfalls, sweeping viewpoints, and endless opportunities for hiking, photography, and outdoor exploration. The historic highway follows the curves of the river, creating one of the most scenic drives in the Pacific Northwest and showcasing some of Oregon’s most spectacular scenery.
Our journey brings us to Hood River, Oregon, a vibrant destination known for its outdoor recreation, local breweries, farm-to-table flavors, and incredible views of the Gorge. We’ll share some of the best things to do in Hood River, including scenic hiking trails, waterfront adventures, local stops worth adding to your itinerary, and ways to experience this special corner of the Pacific Northwest.
From watching the sunset paint the Columbia River to exploring trails with panoramic views of Oregon’s landscape, this episode is packed with travel inspiration for RVers, road trippers, hikers, and anyone looking to experience the beauty of the Gorge.
If you’re planning a Pacific Northwest road trip, searching for things to do in Hood River, Oregon, or looking for your next RV adventure destination, this episode will help you discover why the Columbia River Gorge continues to draw visitors from around the world.
Planning a trip to Hood River, Oregon? Go grab our FREE Hood River Destination Travel Guide and start building your Pacific Northwest adventure. Inside, you’ll find recommendations for scenic stops, outdoor activities, places to explore, and tips to help you make the most of your visit to the Columbia River Gorge. Download your free guide today and start planning your next RV getaway.
Podcast Episode Transcript (EP72):
Pit Stop: Hood River, Oregon
Brooks, Host It's time for our pit stop. Here we take a brief rest. It's a time to refuel, recharge, and explore shorter topics that are meaningful and helpful to us, our viewers. Welcome to RV Out West. I'm your host, Brooks. The mighty Columbia River divides Washington State and Oregon. The gorge stretches eighty five miles between the confluence of the Columbia River and the Deschutes River, down to the edge of Portland, Oregon. When you drive east along highway thirty, leaving the city behind, the journey eastward is a spectacular sight as you drive along the snaking highway. It's almost like a dance between the road and the river, with the powerful and beautiful Columbia River on your left hand side and the steep rock cliffs rising above you on the right. Every time I drive this stretch of road, not only am I in genuine awe of the surrounding nature, but I can't help think about the Lewis and Clark expedition. What it must have been like to travel along this river's gorge when there was no infrastructure and just the wild lands of the Pacific Northwest. About an hour east of Portland, out highway thirty along the Columbia River gorge is the beautiful destination of hood River, a rich outdoor playground for everyone, especially those who love all types of water sports from windsurfing, kayaking, paddle boarding to kite surfing. The winds of the Columbia River and specifically around hood River are famous. The history of hood River, according to the city. The area was inhabited by Native Americans when the Lewis and Clark expedition passed through on October twenty nine, eighteen oh five. Here they found a campsite called Waucoma, or place of Big Trees. The camp was located near what became known as the dog River and its confluence with the Columbia River. Later, Mrs. Nathaniel Coe, a well known pioneer resident of the Valley, objected to the name dog River and succeeded in changing the name to hood River. The name hood River appears on a map as early as eighteen fifty six. Originally a part of Wasco County, hood River County gained its political separation on June twenty three, nineteen oh eight, and its boundaries have remained unchanged to the present time. Nathaniel and Mary Coe were the original owners of a three hundred and nineteen acre government land grant, bordered on the east by Front Street, on the north by the Columbia River to the west on thirteenth Street and to the south by Main Street. In eighteen fifty four, the Nathaniel Coe family filed a land claim on acreage, now part of the City of hood River. They were soon followed by the William Jenkins family and the Benson family. Coe was one of the first to plant fruit trees in the hood River Valley. Apple orchards flourished in this rich valley from eighteen ninety to nineteen twenty, and hood River became famous for its apples in nineteen nineteen. Many apple trees were struck by a killing freeze. Farmers then replaced apple trees with pear trees, and now hood River County leads the world in Anjou pear production. And let's pause now for a quick word from our sponsor. It's summertime and the great outdoors are calling. But did you forget to book a campsite? Nine months ago? Well don't worry. Say goodbye to sold out campgrounds with camper alerts. With camper alerts. You can choose your campground, select your site type and set a personalized alert. And when a site becomes available, they will notify you. It's that simple. Visit camper alerts dot com today and start setting your alerts. The main activities to do in this area, like I mentioned, are all water based. There are hikes in the area, I'm sure, but I don't have any recommendations on where to hike. I'm sure any Google search will yield some great results for you. If you don't have your own gear or are looking to rent or buy, there are a lot of outfitters in the town of hood River. I recommend that you check out big wins hood River from paddle boards, kitesurfing kits to windsurfing. They've got it all and can help get you squared away, even if this is something you've never done before. They can help with that as they also offer instruction and training. Another fun thing to witness is that every year during the fourth weekend in July is the Gorge Paddle Challenge. Top athletes from around the world descend on hood River and compete in an eight mile downwind paddle or kite surfing category. It is a really fun event to witness, and you can have the chance to hobnob with the athletes, who are generally a great group of people, always willing to chat with folks. Hood River is a beer town. They have great breweries in the area, and here are the three that I personally have been to and I really enjoy their pints. Full sail ales. This is the behemoth in the craft beer industry, and for good reason. They make some great beer and are nationally distributed here in hood River. They have a great restaurant and pub located right in downtown Double Mountain Brewery. This brewery makes a wonderful beer, great IPAs and is also a restaurant with your traditional pub fare. But they have really good pub fare and really great burgers from family brewers. Free makes unique beers and I've had their sour IPA and it was delicious and I've not been able to find it since. They specialize in barrel aged and making artisanal and unique beers. What's great about them, too, is their location is downtown, across from the park that is right on the river's edge. They have wonderful food and are kid friendly for those who love coffee. My favorite coffee house is right next door to freedom downtown and it's stoked. Roasters and coffee house. They roast killer beans and make a really good cup of coffee and it's great just to go and get a. It's great to just go and get a cup of coffee in the morning and sit there on a bench and just kind of look at the river and and take it all in. As for restaurants, if you're not looking to cook in your campsite, here are my three favorite places to dine. Pine Street Bakery A great outdoor ambiance with a fun menu. It is a sandwich shop, so if you don't want to eat there, you can easily grab and go and have a picnic elsewhere. My favorite sandwich here is the Cubano, but they also offer breakfast and obviously have some great baked goods, so you can pick up a loaf of bread or other great baked deliciousness. Hood River Taqueria Tacos do I even need to say more? This is the place to go. Sushi Hokulani. There are two sushi places in town, and if you like to eat bait like I do, this is the one that I've been to. I really enjoyed my meal and their sake list. That said, I haven't been to the other sushi joint, so I just can't speak to it. If someone does go or has been, it's called Kobe Sushi and Bar. Please let me know. There are only a small handful of campgrounds in the area, and if you travel in a big rig, it may prove to be even challenging for you to find a spot to camp. Veneto State Park South Campground is about a ten minute drive west from downtown hood River, and it's a typical state park with their typical state park amenities. If you are down visiting during the Gorge Paddle Challenge, this is where the athletes put in for the race and where the race starts from. So it could be a little busy that one weekend. Again, the fourth weekend in July, Tucker Park. They provide numerous sites for overnight camping, but they only include sites for small campers under thirty feet, and the Gorge Base camp is across the hood River Bridge in White Salmon, Washington. This is your more traditional RV park, and probably the only place that those with a big rig will be able to camp. It is a very easy drive back into town so you can go explore hood River. Hood River, Oregon can either be a destination or a stop along your way. If you want to take the scenic route to bend, depending on the types of activities you want to do, a long weekend in hood River is enough to whet your appetite, tight, but I guarantee it will leave you wanting more. Thank you so much for listening. I deeply appreciate it. I'm asking you to help the show grow. Please subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode. And be sure to share with your fellow Rver about this show. Bonus if you leave RV out West, a rating and a review. Now get out there, explore and go see what's beyond the horizon. Thanks so much for listening to RV Out West. Join us again in two weeks with our next episode. Please like and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes or wherever you choose to get your podcasts so you never miss an episode. And I sure would appreciate if you left a rating or a review of the show. Special thanks to Scott Holmes Music for providing the intro song we Are One RV Out West can be found on Instagram and Facebook, where you can interact with us and follow along on our RV adventures around the Pacific Northwest. So get out there, explore and go see what's beyond the horizon.
