Looking east over Portland towards Mount Hood. At 3,426m it’s Oregon’s highest mountain and lies about 80km from Portland.
All our guidebooks stated as fact that the best view of Mount Hood over Portland was from the Washington Park Japanese Gardens. We spoke to a taxi driver who claimed that they were all wrong and that we should head up the hill to Pittock Mansion. Favouring local knowledge over guide books every time, we went straight to the park and were suitably pleased with the results.
Unfortunately, despite the great position, the weather wasn’t on our side. A cloud of haze lingering over the downtown area mostly obscured what would have been a spectacular view over the city.
Rear view of Pittock Mansion
Pittock Mansion
The estate was the home of Oregon Trail pioneers Henry and Georgiana Pittock. Best known as the owner of The Oregonian newspaper, Henry remained at the paper’s helm from 1860 until his death in 1919. His wide-ranging investments made him very wealthy, so he started planning the mansion in 1909, at the age of 73. It was completed in 1914 and three generations of Pittocks occupied the home until 1958.
After the Pittocks moved out, the house fell into disrepair. After serious storm damage in 1962, it was saved from demolition when the citizens of Portland raised $75,000 to help the city reach the $225,000 asking price. After 15 months of restoration it was opened to the public in 1965. Visitors can stroll the grounds for free, or pay to visit the interior.
Looking north from Pittock Mansion towards the 4,392m high Mount Rainier. It’s closer to Seattle than Portland
Japanese Gardens
On the way back through Portland we stopped at the Japanese Gardens and found that at ground level, trees obscured most of the view.
Did we get the wrong place in the Japanese Gardens, or is there a better viewing spot near Portland?
Pingback: Joann Pittman (@jkpittman)
Mount Hood is beautiful – anytime of year and not always visible. Kudos to you for getting it with a little bit of mist.
Be sure to check out Forest Park while in Portland.
Thanks for the tip
It is fun to be from Portland, living in China and having followed your blog for about two years now, to be reading about my old stomping grounds! No matter how long I lived in Portland, I never tired of seeing her majestic peak. As for viewing, it is not the Japanese Garden that has the great view, but the Rose Garden which is on the east side of the Japanese Garden. Instead of heading to the Japanese Garden if you had walked the path through the tennis courts and down, you would have ended up in the Rose Garden (which I am sure does not look the best right now.)
Another great way to see the skyline and mountain is at Portland City Grill, a fancy restaurant which has a really good happy hour (don’t pay full price.). It is a fun atmosphere and a great view of the city.
I do not know how long you are staying in the Portland area, but this Sunday is one of the largest road races in Portland–the Shamrock Run. It is held downtown and has about 35,000 runners who will be in wild apparel. The winner of the race wins their weight in beer, if that gives you any idea how it is. It is a great time (I ran it every year I lived in Portland) and it would be fun way to people watch and get an idea how crazy Portlanders can be. Food vendors and bagpipers will be out in full force as well. Plus I think the iconic pub, Kells, will have a huge tent set up all day for food and beer.
Enjoy your time! Portland is awesome and I am excited to continue to see it through your eyes!
Sounds like we missed a promising view from the Rose Garden…maybe I should pay more attention to the guide books!
I meant to mention above that on the way out of Seattle we stopped at the Bakery in Black Diamond for coffee and a great view of Mount Rainier.
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