As RV travelers, Vivian and I view Oregon as one of those places you can keep coming back to again and again and never get bored. This is especially so if you love the outdoors. The energy for outdoor recreation runs high in Oregon, likely contributing to it being the 11th healthiest in the country. It has 363 miles of ocean coast that is entirely open to the public, the largest river in the Pacific Northwest, the northern Cascade Range with plenty of snow-capped volcanic mountains, a valley well known for its Pinot Noir and a high desert of painted hills and wild mustangs.
We thought we would feel old in Oregon, but the fact is, we didn’t. Despite its adventurous spirit, Oregon offers plenty of activities to engage in that don’t require a 100-ft vertical rock face or wind-driven water. No technical equipment necessary to enjoy Oregon’s natural wonders. You can casually seek out many of them without getting your feet wet or straining a muscle too much.
A few days near central Oregon’s largest city that sits between the Cascade Mountains and the high desert plateaus and another few days along the Columbia River gave us time to explore a few of Oregon’s natural wonders – the powerful Columbia River Gorge, the alluring Multnomah Falls and many others like it, the towering and golden-lit Smith Rock and the endlessly flowing painted hills of John Day Fossil Beds.
From Bend, the drive north on Highway 97 looks like this as we approached the Columbia River. 
Heading west along I-84 we can see the Oregon trunk rail bridge and its vertical lift. 
The farther west you drive, the greener it gets. 
Mount Hood and lots of electrical wires from the Dalles Dam. 
Crossing over the Columbia River from Washington back to Oregon. 
Power from the Columbia River by way of the Bonneville Dam, looking south from the Washington side. 
Fish ladders at the Bonneville dam to assist the migration of fishes. 
The power source at the dam. 
At the visitor center, you can enter a viewing room with several fish observing windows. 
While we were there, the pacific lamprey were migrating up river to spawn. Despite the ick factor these lampreys do good things for the river. 
Behind doors are actual people who count the fish daily. 
When a third dam was built (seen on the left side where we parked), the entire town of North Bonneville was moved to its current location on the map. 
On the Oregon side, we visited the Bonneville Fish Hatchery. For some reason, Bigfoot is popular in that area. 
We viewed the very large and very old sturgeons at the hatchery. These fish are about 5 feet in length.
Did we get to the coastline? Not this time. As with many places we arrive in, we do so with intentions to come back. Oregon is one of those places and we went as far as having a discussion with a realtor who manages rental properties. Yes, we could spend much more time in the state whose motto written in Latin means ‘She flies with her own wings”. Enjoy the many photos from the beautiful state of Oregon.
RV TIP
Vivian and I don’t have a dog, but we travel with a dog bone! And we use it on occasion depending on the campground. No, it is not a treat we keep for neighbor’s dogs , rather it is like the one pictured below. It’s a power adapter cord that plugs into a 30AMP outlet (left side) and has a 50AMP adapter on the other end (right side) for your RV’s 50 AMP power cord. RVs are all similar in that they use electrical power, but they can differ on how much power they require. Bigger RVs can use more and will run at full capacity on 50 AMP service. For example, if your RV has two air conditioners like ours, you need 50 AMP to run both while using other appliances such as the convection oven. A smaller unit can get by on 30AMP.
The problem for an RV that runs on 50 AMP is that occasionally, a campground offers only 30 AMP service. What to do, what to do? That’s where the dog bone comes in! We plug its 30AMP male end to the campsite’s power pedestal and plug the female end to our 50 AMP cord, which then connects to our RV. Voila! We now have power, but only 30 AMP – which means we have to conserve our power usage. No running 2 ACs and no running the AC while using the convection oven and certain other appliances such as the Instant Pot. But it’s all good!
Changing Views From Our RV 
As you know, we absolutely loved Oregon. We stayed near Bend and also visited Sisters. I understand why you talked with a realtor. What a great state to explore. I notice that your state map has a few blank spaces over on the east coast.. Does Vivian know about this??
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