Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
U-pick enthusiasts with a soft spot for farm animals may also want to consider stopping by
Draper Girls Country Farm
(6200 Hwy. 35, 541/
352-6625,
www.drapergirlscountryfarm.com
)
. In addition to u-pick of fruit by the bushel, and a store with some amazing jams and fruit butters,
Draper Girls has a petting zoo featuring sheep, goats, pigs, and more.
Set up on a side road right along the Fruit Loop route,
Glassometry Studios
(3015 Lower Mill Dr., 541/354-3015,
www.glassometry.com
)
gives intrepid visitors the opportunity to feel the heat of the kiln with a special four-hour hands-on workshop ($200 pp for two, $180 pp for four).
Even if you don't plan to work in the studio, the shop's artists display a pretty glass garden outside and sell their wares from a store that features
windows looking into the work area.
MOUNT HOOD SCENIC RAILROAD
If you've already been cooped up in the car long enough, skip the Fruit Loop drive and see the Hood River Valley by train instead. Take the ex-
cursion train from the town of Hood River 22 miles all the way down to its terminus in Parkdale for a four-hour round-trip tour. Or do a two-hour
trip to Odell. On some weekends the railroad spices rides up with a Western Train Robbery-themed train great for kids who want to help be on
the lookout for train robbers who'll try to stop the train to carry out their old-timey larceny. Mount Hood Scenic Railroad also offers a number of
brunch and dinner excursions within its equipped dining cars, including a very fun Murder Mystery Dinner Train.
VIEWPOINTS
There are a number of tripod-friendly places in and around Hood River to take in panoramic views of the Gorge and Mount Hood. At the little
Ruthton Park,
Ruthton Point Overlook
(0.4 mile west of Columbia Gorge Hotel on Westcliff Dr.) presents a view of Ruthton Point and Washing-
ton cliffs in the distance, as well as passing trains as they snake their way just below at river level. And at
Panorama Point County Park,
clear
days will give you vistas of Mount Hood towering over the orchards and vineyards of the fertile Hood River Valley. The park is only about three
miles out of the central downtown district. Just take State Route 35 south to Eastside Road, take a left, and follow the signs to the park.
FULL SAIL BREWERY TOUR
The driving force behind Hood River's heritage as the microbrewery Mecca in the Gorge region, Full Sail Brewery has been concocting its suds
by the Columbia since 1989. A beloved institution among the boardheads, farmers, and even vintners in the Hood, Full Sail throws open its brew-
ery doors for an informative half-hour tour four times a day. The guides will show you the equipment and the fresh ingredients that go into the
beer that goes out the door and will tell you about how the upstart brewery started here out of a defunct fruit cannery. The tour ends in the Full
Sail Tasting Room, where you can give most of its stock a sip for $1.
WINERIES
Set up right next to the Mount Hood Scenic Railroad depot,
Springhouse Cellar's
casual tasting bar is driven by a unique innovation: wine on
tap. Committed to sustainable winemaking, Spinghouse serves up a red and a white wine stored within its old cannery building cellar upstairs via
a unique tap system that gives the winery the ability to offer wine refills to anyone who comes with a cleaned out, empty wine bottle in hand. The
winery isn't just about schtick, though, serving some delicious wines from bottles as well. Try the surprisingly complex Cherry Ort or the house
specialty Ruins Red, a sangiovese/merlot/cab blend named after the old remnants of a distillery on the property.
Just a few minutes from downtown, the tasting room at
Cathedral Ridge Winery
is run out of a little cottage flanked by vineyard rows and
a grassy picnic area bedecked with old barrels full of flowers and an incredible view of Mount Adams to the north. Inside, the wines take center
stage, serving with some of the best reds south of the Columbia. The reserve syrah and the reserve cabernet are worth the trip all by themselves.
Focused primarily on Italian varietals,
Marchesi Vineyards
goes all out to embrace its owner's Italian winemaking heritage in the tasting room.
Expect a warm reception, red checkered cloths, a mural imported from Italy's Piedmonte growing district and some Italian olive trees outside
on the patio to complete the effect. The winery's sangiovesi and experimental dolcetto are both the highlights of this tasting stop along the Fruit
Loop.
With a bar featuring ornately carved accents and giant mirrors, a dramatically high ceiling and huge windows with sweeping views of its vine-
yards and Mount Hood in the skyline,
Mt. Hood Winery
runs one of the classiest tasting rooms in the entire Hood River Valley. With vines
growing on a 100-year-old farm along the Fruit Loop that still tends an impressive pear orchard, the wine here often features fruity flavors that
are imparted through soil long used to apples, cherries, and pears. Try the pinot noir, or for something unique, the pear wine stands as a sweet but
extremely crisp summer wine.
