Southern Oregon Road Trip
Join Chloe and the PDX-TV crew as they visit a few of
the great summer vacation spots in Southern Oregon.
Fox 12's 8 O'Clock News Report
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Travel Log for Southern Oregon Road Trip
As school is getting out and Summer is heating up, it’s a great time to take a look at some attractions right in our own back-yard. That’s why we’re partnering with www.doitnw.com to take a little Southern Oregon Road Trip! Betcha didn’t know that www.doitnw.com has more than great locally owned restaurants they’ve also got some fun attractions listed (that also serve great food of course)!
After getting a list of stops researched and mapquested, my photographer, Dave and I left the TV Station at 7am on a Wednesday for a 3 ½ hour trip down I-5 to our first stops on our Doitnw.com Southern Oregon Road Trip. Other than having to get up and put on make-up and fix my hair before leaving at 7am, the trip started off well! The sun was shining, the freeway zipped by, and with only one rest stop, we arrived at our destination in Canyonville OR. In only 3 hours and 10 minutes! Take that Mapquest!
Seven Feathers Casino was our first Southern Oregon location. My first reaction upon pulling into the parking lot was surprise! “This place is HUGE!” I said to Dave, and it is. Seven Feathers Casino boasts table games such as blackjack, craps, roulette, and poker, not to mention slot machines of every kind and variety as far as the eye can see! Seven Feathers is also home to a convention center hosting everything from comedians to fights, and a soon to be expanding 147 room hotel. In addition, if you come by RV, Seven Feathers RV Park is one of the top rated in the entire country! We passed several RV’ers who told us that they come back every chance they get. Seven Feathers also holds 3 restaurants, which of course, I felt it was my duty to sample and report on!
Stix Sports Bar serves up local brews, too many TV’s to count, and great food to watch the game. We sampled the Thai Beef Salad, the Taco Pizza, and the Portabella Sandwich (all very munchable)! I especially liked the beef on the Thai Salad I don’t know what it was marinated in…but it was very tasty! The staff who were taking us on our tour of Seven Feathers also all recommended the fried green beans off camera, so if you go, you may want to start off with an order of those.
Cow Creek Restaurant is the place to grab breakfast lunch and a casual dinner (and when their buffets are going…all I can say is “holy cow”…pun intended)! Here we tried out the Southwest Chicken Salad (Chef Allan gave me the scoop on their famous house-made dressing, but I’m sworn to secrecy) and a beautiful penne pasta dish, along with one of Cow Creek’s beautiful omelets. I’m a sucker for omelets! By the way, even if Canyonville isn’t your final destination when driving to Southern Oregon, if you pass by Seven Feathers on a Friday night, Cow Creek Restaurant has a fabulously inexpensive Seafood buffet! $15.25 for grown-ups, $7.50 for the kiddos!
Finally, we ended our tour of Seven Feathers in their upscale and beautiful Camas Room. Here we sampled scallops wrapped in prosciuttio with a vegetable ménage, and passionfruit reduction (insert girlish squeal here), a roasted pork tenderloin with blueberry barbecue sauce (by the way, this sauce is so good, I’m inspired to try making it myself at home…and I will most likely fail), and a beautiful slice of opera cake large enough to share…life is good!
After all of this excitement and good food, you wouldn’t think that we’d have room or energy to shoot at another location right after shooting at Seven Feathers, ordinarily, you’d be right, I’d at least need a nap, but this is a Road Trip and we’re on a schedule! So Dave and I hopped in the trusty station mini-van and cruised across the road to our next stop in the www.doitnw.com Southern Oregon Road Trip: Seven Feathers Truck and Travel Center!
Video: PDX-TV Reports
Give Me a Drink and Some Cards | Everything for the Gaming Enthusiast
Fine Dining with Chef Alan | Stix Sports Bar | Cow Creek Restaurant | RV Park
Convention Center
Seven Feathers Truck and Travel Center may look like a truck stop, and it is, but it’s the nicest most inviting and most fun truck stop I’ve ever been in! Seven Feathers Truck and Travel Center is home to a ginormous convenience store (which I learned in the industry are called “C” Stores), complete with it’s own deli, and attached to the convenience store side of Seven Feathers Truck and Travel Center is the Creekside Restaurant. In addition to being a large, open, family friendly space to stop for a made-from-scratch meal on the road, Creekside Restaurants also has a few surprises in store. From the standard burgers and full breakfast menu, Creekside also offers several salad and upscale sandwich offerings (including a NW pear salad which was very tasty). I was also unbelievably excited to find an open faced turkey sandwich with house roasted turkey, real mashed potatoes, gravy and cranberry sauce I LOVE those and they’re getting harder to find on a menu! If you come to Creekside for nothing else though, you’ve got to get dessert! Creekside employs an in-house pastry chef who creates the most mouth-watering fantastic wonderland of sugary confectionary goodness ever to hit a rotating pie case! These are the kind of desserts you used to find in roadside cafes, but now, for the most part, just dream about! The pies are so good that Danielle, the PR gal for Seven Feathers is serving them at her wedding instead of cake! Also…I don’t want to get you too excited, but you can get a cinnamon roll here that is literally the size of your head!
After our stops in Canyonville, you think we’d surely be so stuffed with food and tired after our drive and shoots that we’d stop right here and rest for the night…but nope, not us! www.doitnw.com had such a big list of Southern Oregon locations that we had to keep rolling down the road to our next stop…Ashland Oregon!
I had never been to Ashland before, but had heard some great things. I have to say, I was not disappointed! Ashland is all at once cosmopolitan and quaint, bustling and relaxing. Everyone strolling along Main Street, shopping and eating seemed to have a big smile and an easy-going vibe and as soon as Dave and I pulled up to Pasta Piatti, I could see what all the smiles were about!
Video: PDX-TV Reports
Their Pies are a Mouthful | C-Store is Open 24 Hours | Unexpected Dining
What Can You Find at the Creekside | What's for Breakfast
Hot Turkey and Hot C.A.B. Sandwiches | Pies, Cakes, and Cinamon Rolls
Pasta Piatti is a charming little restaurant with warm earthy reds, purples and yellow tones on the walls, exposed beams and wooden floors. The outside patio is large and open providing just the right amount of sun to shade ratio. Did I mention the food yet? It’s pretty fantastic!
The owner Lisa, started us off with her favorite dishes in the restaurant cheese plate abundant with goat cheese, Oregonzola, mozzarella, olives, candied walnuts and more. Lisa recommended the Cheese plate, the patio and a glass of wine, and I can’t say as I blame her! Pasta Piatti also serves casual lunch or dinner options such as the house Caesar Salad (served traditionally with whole Romaine leaves that Dave later told me was supposed to be eaten with your fingers as I cut into it with a fork and knife)! Lisa served up the Caesar along with one of Pasta Piatti’s signature pizzas The Eva with Prosciuttio, pesto, arugula, and fontina cheese (delish)! Finally, Pasta Piatti can go fancy too! Try a halibut cooked to perfection (crispy outside soft and moist inside and paired perfectly with asparagus and lemon risotto). I may very well have dreams about dessert here too! Bittersweet chocolate cake, with a warm molten center, topped off with a cool creamy espresso gelato? Heaven.
Dave and I finished up our first day of shoots for our www.doitnw.com Southern Oregon Road Trip by waddling out of Pasta Piatti, and checking into our hotel. We stayed at the Ashland Springs, a beautiful landmark hotel in Ashland (which was cheaper than the Best Western by the way…just goes to show that it pays to do a little googling before your trip)! One word of advice, if you go out for an after dinner stroll in Ashland, most of the shops close between 5:30pm and 6:30pm so if you adventure out after that time, you’ll still get a lovely walk, but not much shopping!
After our first day of shoots and a shoppingless stroll, I sank into bed at the Ashland Springs and woke up excited for our 2nd day of shooting in Southern Oregon!
The next morning, Dave and I had one last shoot in Ashland before heading down the highway, we took a short drive over to Lithia Park in Ashland to shoot at the newly opened Sesame Kitchen.
Video: PDX-TV Reports
New World Italian | Gorgeous Laid Back Meal | Enjoy the Outdoor Patio
Sesame Kitchen is a open airy Asian Fusion restaurant owned by Lisa and Tom who also own Pasta Piatti. Sesame Kitchen is newly opened (not even a month old) and already turning out some unforgettable dishes.
I’ve been telling everyone back here at the TV station about the Lobster Lo Mein (a stir-fried noodle dish bursting with plump lobster and veggies and topped with two large scallops and two large prawns) I really really really wish I’d gotten the recipe for this one because I’m seriously considering a drive back down to Ashland to get it again! We also sampled the five spice short ribs which were fall-off-the-bone tender and deliciously seasoned, along with the simple and satisfying wonton chips and dynamite fish cakes! Also, if you stop into Sesame Asian Kitchen, treat yourself to a cocktail, they’ve got a maestro behind the bar and they are serving up some gorgeous drinks that pair perfectly with the food!
As Dave and I sadly waved goodbye to Sesame Asian Kitchen (not too sadly because we got to take some leftovers with us for lunch), we left Ashland and pointed the mini-van north to Caves Junction Oregon and the Oregon Caves Chateau. By the way, this is the location that our mapquest caused the most problems. According to the directions I’d printed out, the Oregon Caves are 1 ½ hours from Ashland, if you are going…plan on at least 2 hours to make the trek.
Video: PDX-TV Reports
A Little Spicy and Fun | Wonderful Lobster Lomein | Fresh Organic Ingedients
The Oregon Caves Chateau is a wonderful way to travel back in time; built during the Great Depression and maintained as a historical building, The Oregon Caves Chateau would be an interesting family destination or a romantic getaway for two!
When you step inside the dark cool wood of the Chateau, you literally feel as if you’re stepping back in time, you will learn about the building, (ask about the building almost being destroyed in a flood) see amazing artwork from local artists both on display and in the gift shop and try great Northwest cuisine in the dining room or in the 1930’s style diner! The diner is maintained exactly as it was built in the 1930’s and the cuisine reflects that. From famous hand made shakes to patty melts, this is a great way to get a true retro diner experience. If you’re looking for fancier fare, the dining room in the Oregon Caves Chateau serves NW fish, bison and more alongside a large selection of Southern Oregon Wines.
While you’re at the Oregon Caves Chateau, you really must go into the Caves. This is one experience that I didn’t truly comprehend how amazing it would be until I was inside. Water runs through and seeps into the caves, dissolving and re-forming the rocks inside into whirling, round abstract sculptures, stalagtites hang from the celing as stalagmites reach up to meet them, grottos and cathedral like spaces are created and tunnels run out of sight like an undulating river made of stone. The tour takes 90 minutes and the caves are a constant 44 degrees…so dress in layers.
Dave and I would have liked to stay and take the entire cave tour, or relax with a book in the cozy lobby of the Chateau, but we were on a schedule! We had to be back in Grants Pass for a scenic dinner cruise aboard a Jetboat!
Video: PDX-TV Reports
Where Does the Creek Go? | There's Lots To Do At the Oregon Caves | Inside the Caves
Lodging, Fine, Dining, and More | The Creek and Dining Room | Inside the Lodge
Get a Milkshake In The Diner
Hellgate Jetboat Excursions is flat out fun! Did you know that a jet boat isn’t really powered by a jet engine? Rather the term jet boat refers to extremely powerful water jets that propel the boat and allow it to run in extremely shallow water. Don’t worry…I didn’t know that either! The scenic dinner cruise is a beautiful tour to take, clocking in at about 4 hours, the jet boat Captain fills you in on local flora fauna and history on an hour-long ride down the river. Then, the boat stops at the O.K. Corral, talk about your down home cooking! Barbecue Chicken, fork-tender ribs, and home made biscuits and cornbread served family style on huge platters on the deck of a log lodge over looking the river, toss in wine, beer, ice tea and lemonade, and you don’t get more perfect than that! Oh wait…yes you do…there’s berry cobbler for dessert! After you’ve eaten all you can hold at the O.K. Corrall it’s time to jump back on board the Hellgate Jetboat tour for a 45 minute ride back to Grants Pass. The ride back is definitely more action packed as the Captain throws in a few 360 degree turns, and a few unexpected stops that may or may not toss a little water your way (I recommend the very back of the boat if you don’t want to get too wet)!
Once Dave and I hit the dock back in Grants Pass, we checked into our hotel (the Best Western was the cheapest in this case), and conked out! Another fun and busy day done on our www.doitnw.com Southern Oregon Road Trip!
The next morning, we had one last shoot to take care of before heading back to Portland and normal life, a chase boat shoot with Hellgate Jetboat Excursions! What is a chase boat? It’s a boat that the camera person (in this case Dave) rides in to follow the Jetboat, and get shots along side, coming towards and going away from us. It’s also a great vantage point to see the boat doing turns and stops and cruising through whitewater rapids! On our final morning in Grants Pass with Hellgate Jetboats, we got to follow a jetboat for a five hour whitewater rapids tour. This tour sees a little more action and goes further down river than the scenic dinner tour, expect to hold on and have fun (but it’s still family safe). Dave and I got some great shots of the Hellgate Jetboat shooting through canyons and crashing over waves, and then we headed back to shore with Travis the Owner and Danny, our chase boat captain! Once we hit the dock, it was time to climb back in the mini-van and head for home.
Video: PDX-TV Reports
What Makes White Water Better | Scream and Hold On | Great for All Ages
Brunch, Lunch, Dinner and More | Dinner Cruise | Great Family Memories
White Water Trip
Southern Oregon is a fantastic place to take a family vacation. The drive is about the same as a trip to Seattle, so why not head south? Though I know Dave and I got to see and do many fun things, I know there are still more great things to be discovered. If you want to plan your own road trip, start on www.doitnw.com, you can decide how far south you want to drive, click on that region and see a list of great options. The one thing I love about www.doitnw.com is that all of the attractions and restaurants listed are locally owned, so not only are you finding high-quality locations, you’re also supporting the local economy!
Have fun, buckle in, happy travels and bring me back a giant cinnamon roll or slice of pie!
Chloe Houser
PDX-TV Reports
