Pippin at McDowell FallsTrails, Lodging, and the Gear We Don’t Leave Home Without
Continuing our road tripping report on tried-and-true dog-friendly adventures in Oregon, sniffing out great Oregon adventures, great places to stay, and new accessories.
EASTERN OREGON
BAKER CITY: Moms push babies. Teens ride cruisers. Jocks run. Couples stroll. Dogs walk. And a river runs through it. The perfect urban trail - the Leo Adler Memorial Parkway - cuts a nice, paved swath in the heart of Baker City following the Powder River through an urban landscape.
Leo Adler Parkway in Baker City
Nearby Pet-Friendly Lodging: Roadway Inn, Sunridge Inn
Gear of Choice: The Spindrift Standard Lead has some really helpful extras: a traffic handle near the bottom for those times you need to keep your friend close and a buckle on the handle that allows you to easily clip your leash to a post, a slender tree or the bike rack at the local coffee shop.
SOUTHERN OREGON
Crescent Lake Homes.comCRESCENT LAKE: Pip lays his chin on the aft deck, transfixed by the wake while we putter at trolling speed past the lakeside cabins. Dreaming, all of us, I suppose. Pip of bunnies and butterflies and me of roosting in one of those cabins, setting up a base camp while the sun sets behind us and all things possible lay before us.
Nearby Pet-Friendly Lodging: Crescent Lake Resort
Gear of Choice: Play fetch on the beach with a Spindrifter Dog Disk. They have a rim on both sides that make it easy for a dog to pick up, are easy on your dog’s teeth when catching out of the air, and extremely durable.
LINN COUNTY
2 RIVERS COUNTRY TRAIL, Albany
2 Rivers Country TrailThe Santaim and Calapooia Rivers wind through this fertile valley, as you pass by fields and farms and clusters of wild flowers. The Oregon Country Trails website has maps and legends to farms that are open to the public, as well as wineries, cheese makers, chocolatiers, parks, covered bridges and more. Read about another great trail in Linn County: McDowell Creek Falls.
Nearby Pet-Friendly Lodging: Phoenix Inn, Albany.
Gear of Choice: When you book a nice hotel, with a nice bed, you can do the same for your dog. Pip sleeps in his organic Bumper Bed, a sort of dog donut arrangement, which goes with us wherever we travel.
EUGENE, CASCADES & COAST
Pre's Trail in Alton Baker Park, PanaramioEUGENE’S GREEN SPACES & URBAN TRAILS: The city of Eugene has done a fine job of building trails and parks around the Willamette River, which flows through its heart. Often called “Run Town,” due to its symbiosis with Nike, the University of Oregon track team, and Steve Prefontaine, trails are a big deal in Eugene. Not rain, nor sleet, hail and nor storm can keep people (and pets) off these appointed trails:
• Alton Baker Park
• Owen Rose Garden
• Delta Ponds
Nearby Pet-Friendly Lodging: La Quinta Inns & Suites overlooks the Willamette River and sits at the gates to Alton Baker Park.
Gear of Choice: Pip drinks from Ruff Wear’s “Quencher” water bowl, which is handy collapsible bowl that I can easily stuff into my daypack after a drink break.
Bellknap Hot SpringsBELKNAP & BEYOND: You’ll find one of the most gorgeous, coolest trails in Oregon along the McKenzie River. 26 miles of single-track runs through an old-growth forest while the wild and scenic McKenzie makes it’s way to the Willamette Valley. Belknap Hot Springs, which sits on the McKenzie River, offers natural hot springs soaking pools, a Secret Garden, per-friendly lodging, and trails winding through the forest.
Nearby Pet-Friendly Lodging: Belknap Hot Springs Resort & RV Park, McKenzie Riverside Cottages, Holiday Farm Resort
Gear of Choice: Night falls early in the mountains. When Pip and I travel, I always clip a Ruff Wear beacon to his collar, so I can easily spot him when the sun goes down. The red light illuminates in short flashes, long flashes or a steady beam.
Suislaw Water TrailFLORENCE: Where the river meets the sea, interesting things happen. These unique areas, called estuaries, are trapped between fresh water and salt water, and subject to the influences of both. Just outside of the coastal town of Florence, you’ll find The Siuslaw Estuary Water Trail – 30 miles of beauty and wildlife between Mapleton, Oregon and the Pacific Ocean.
Nearby Pet-Friendly Lodging: Park Motel, Edgewater Cottages
Gear of Choice: Don’t leave pet waste on the beach. The Looper Scooper leather bag dispensers are newest, most elegant line of waste bag dispensers, available in 13 colors of soft calfskin.
Read "Pip's Oregon Adventures, Part 1."
TRAVEL & RECREATION RESOURCES
Visit Eastern Oregon
Travel Southern Oregon
Willamette River Paths
Eugene, Cascades & Coast Visitor Information
City of Eugene Parks and Open Space
Albany Visitors Association
Florence Area Chamber of Commerce
