Jon Bell

What if there was a place close to Portland where you could quickly escape from city life and feel like you’re in another world? A place where you could almost lose yourself paddling through slim streams and curving channels, watching majestic birds soar overhead or strolling along the mighty Columbia River just 30 minutes from the city? Well, there is. More

What are the odds that you could walk onto a bustling urban college campus and stroll right into a brand-new art museum to take in the work of world-renowned artists for free? Actually pretty good, now that the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at Portland State University is open. More

I’ll never forget it — and I know he won’t, either. It was a beautiful bluebird day on Mt. Hood’s Lost Lake: Sunshine, barely a breeze, a snowy peak rising into the clear sky and reflecting in the ripples of the lake. My son, Spencer, and I coasted in a kayak along a shadowy drop-off near the shore, a fishing pole gripped in his hands, a line trailing silently behind. More

If a crisp winter breeze off the Columbia River, the warmth of a fire after a day of skiing on Mt. Hood, or a train ride to a mystery destination called Christmas Town aren’t the kinds of things that will put you in a festive holiday mood — well, then, the Hood River Valley is not for you. More

There’s a place in Eastern Oregon where you can see leather saddles made as they have been for 100 years, where top-40 headliners share the stage with country stars, and where you can see the ruts from Oregon Trail pioneers that came west along this route 175 years ago. That place is Pendleton, where the mix of Old West flavors and new-school artists make it an ideal place to escape for three days. Wagon or not, here’s how to spend three days in Pendleton. More

From the Wallowa Mountains to Anthony Lakes, Eastern Oregon is packed with places to ski and snowshoe. More

Known for skiing and snowboarding, Mt. Hood Skibowl is is also a hot spot for another family fun adventure: cosmic tubing, which turns the hill into a sort of icy dance floor lit up by 600,000 LED lights, black lights, lasers and more. More

When the days grow shorter and the rain and snow set in, there’s a natural inclination to bundle up, light the fire and enjoy the world from inside. But to truly experience winter in Oregon, you need to fight the urge to hibernate and get outside. Sure, Oregon offers opportunities for outdoor fun all year… More

I’ve traipsed all over Mt. Hood — past Burnt Lake and up to Zigzag Mountain, over to McNeil Point, nearly to the top of Barrett Spur, out to Owl Point, through Elk Meadows and up Gnarl Ridge. I’ve been to the summit four times, circled around the entire beauty twice on the 41-mile Timberline Trail, snowshoed to Cloud Cap, skied White River and paddled around Lost Lake. And yet I’ve never spent the night here, never pitched the tent among the wildflowers, burbling streams and... More