Aaron

Aaron

    One of six historic covered bridges in the small and charming town of Cottage Grove.
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    Quintessential Small Towns & Main Streets to Explore in 2025

    7 Oregon towns that will make you question the big city life written by Jean Chen Smith I am nearing my ten-year anniversary as an Oregonian, and I still feel as though there are pockets of this state to be discovered. Coming from suburban New Jersey and having worked in New York City for almost a twenty-year stretch, I have come to appreciate the small hamlets and communities spread across our great state, which is just a tad bigger than the United Kingdom. I love the idea of escaping the hustle and bustle of our daily lives for some downtime— that is why small towns are so enticing. They offer history, charm and a laid-back pace of living. There are also plenty of opportunities to connect with nature and wildlife. We have rounded up seven of our favorite idyllic small towns and main streets in the state. Perhaps they are…

    Cascade Bungalows blend Scandinavian design and modern comfort.
    Explore Oregon, Lodging

    Brasada Ranch: A Luxury Escape

    written by Kerry Newberry Need a break from the wintry rain without booking a flight? Head to the high desert sun of Central Oregon for a sojourn on the range at Brasada Ranch. Located just twenty minutes outside of Bend, the luxury retreat recently added sixteen new private mountain bungalows to the resort property. Embracing Scandinavian design and contemporary comfort, each stylish bungalow has a private patio and outdoor soaking tub. You can hike snow-dusted trails just steps away and then cozy up by your fireplace with looming mountain views. While you can also book their popular ranch house suites and canyon cabins, the bungalows have singular amenities, from breakfast delivery each morning to a quiet pool. 16986 SW BRASADA RANCH ROADBEND/POWELL BUTTE www.brasada.com BUNGALOWS For painterly views of the Cascade mountain range along with luxury amenities, book one of sixteen bungalows. The newest addition to the high-desert getaway, each…

    Park City and the surrounding Wasatch Range boast some of the best and most consistent snow for skiing and riding.
    Explore Oregon, Northwest Destination

    Park City: Ski, Dine & Explore in Utah’s Alps

    Park City shines with the nation’s largest alpine resort and a hopping after-slopes scene written by James Sinks When life sends clouds—as Pacific Northwest winters are known to do—seek silver linings. Try looking eastward. An abundance of escapist luster awaits in the craggy, silver-laden Wasatch Back Range in Utah, and in its centerpiece nineteenth century mine town of Park City. Navigate silver (and gold) Olympic medalists’ terrain. Celebrate the silver screen. Admire local-fashioned sterling jewelry. Lunch at the Silver Star Café. And happily embrace the truism that not all that glitters need be gold. Long a hunting territory of Indigenous Ute tribes, the Wasatch region of the Rocky Mountains wasn’t initially enticing to westward-bound settlers in the 1860s, especially when compared to the fast-growing religious enclave founded by Brigham Young at nearby Great Salt Lake. But then prospectors struck silver. For the following century, mines churned out precious ore and…

    Built in 1860, Kubli Haus is a tastefully updated version of its prior self.
    Explore Oregon, Lodging

    Kubli Haus: A Historic Stay in Jacksonville

    written by Kerry Newberry | photography by Martina Patella/Kubli House For Kathleen and Brian Dunn, Kubli Haus is more than a small town retreat—it’s an ode to history and happenstance. A few years ago, when considering a pivot from city suburb to small town life, the couple began touring properties in Southern Oregon. “When we first drove into Jacksonville, we looked at each other and knew this was it,” said Kathleen. Steeped in history and packed with charm, the entire town of Jacksonville is designated a National Historic Landmark. It’s easy to swoon over the beautiful brick buildings and leafy neighborhoods. What the couple didn’t expect was to fall head over heels for a ramshackle but stately historic home built in 1860 that was in need of monumental TLC. “We knew it was a big risk,” said Brian. “But we also wanted to invest in the town.” The yearslong labor…

    Jacksonville sets up like a postcard during the holidays.
    Explore Oregon, Trip Planner

    A Storybook Winter: Jacksonville & Applegate Valley’s Holiday Magic

    ’Tis the most wonderful place when snow comes to Southern Oregon written by James Sinks Imagine a storybook gold rush-era town, where stately houses and brick boutiques glisten with holiday charm, where recreation options beckon and where cocoa and award-winning wines take turns warming you up. Also, imagine it’s not only Santa checking to see if you’re naughty or nice. Bigfoot might be watching, too. In Southern Oregon’s Jacksonville and the neighboring Applegate Valley, imagination meets reality. Here, as the mercury falls, lights go up and the nostalgia comes out. Each year, a Victorian Christmas celebration offers a tantalizing escape to a simpler time. Distant are big city stressors, and real world depressors. Soak in the decor, food, farm stands, spas, musicians, trails, parade and the romantic downtown that practically begs you to hold hands inside your winter gloves. This year, the tradition gets bigger. Jacksonville Trolley buses that previously…

    Vancouver Island’s Malahat SkyWalk soars above the forest, giving visitors who make the climb unparalleled views.
    Explore Oregon, Northwest Destination

    Malahat SkyWalk and Victoria’s Indigenous Ties

    The soaring Malahat SkyWalk helps connect the present to Vancouver’s Indigenous past written by James Sinks Unfolding below, a lush blanket of Vancouver Island rainforest disappears at a rugged shoreline, and then rises again through mist-shrouded hillsides across a narrow bay. Eagles tack in the wind. There is no bustle, except maybe the happy screams of children descending a slide nearby. The bird’s-eye vantage comes courtesy of one of the more ambitious and architecturally stunning ecotourism projects in North America, the circular Malahat SkyWalk, just northwest of Victoria, B.C. Opened in 2021, the centerpiece of the $17 million SkyWalk project is a towering wood-and-steel scaffold that invites you to corkscrew from a Douglas fir-and-cedar forest upward some ten floors—roughly 800 feet from the ground below—to a 360-degree viewing platform where on clear days you can see as far away as Washington’s Mount Baker. It’s a place that can make you…

    Brussels Sprout Gratin is elevated with the addition of bacon and lemon juice.
    Farm to Table, Live Oregon

    Brussels Sprout Gratin: A Simple & Versatile Recipe

    written by Thor Erickson | photography by Tambi Lane “Don’t get lost this time!” my dad shouted to my sister Heidi and me as he backed our van into the loading dock at the bustling wholesale produce market. The towering stacks of fragrant fruits and vegetables were perfect for hide and seek. “Bonjour!” bellowed a deep voice as we opened the door of the van. “What is you are looking for today?” said Louis with a thick French accent. “Whatever is on special,” Dad said. Louis was one of the many vegetable vendors that dad bought from at the market and had relocated from Paris twenty years earlier. “Your lucky day!” Louis said joyfully. “Brussels sprouts are very special, and I will give a better deal if you buy six cases.” Dad was not one to pass up a good deal. “I’ll take six then,” Dad said, smiling. Heidi and…

    The tasting room at Furioso Vineyards in Dundee.
    Food+Drink, Live Oregon

    Road Trip-Worthy Winery Lunches

    written by Kerry Newberry In our fast-paced world, there are too few slow-down moments. But one easy way to embrace the art of slow living is with a leisurely lunch in a beautiful place. Enter the Willamette Valley, one of the most renowned wine regions in the world. Here are just a few of the region’s wineries where lunch feels like a mini-vacation. At Soter Vineyards (10880 NE Mineral Springs Road, Carlton; www.sotervineyards.com), most of the herbs and vegetables on the menu come from the surrounding 240-acre biodynamic farm and vineyard—also home to a herd of pictorial Scottish Highland cattle along with chickens, goats and heritage breed pigs. Book the Provisions Tasting, and you’ll feast on family-style dishes like squash bisque, poached leeks sprinkled with hazelnuts and mushroom arancini. For Italian-inspired bites and moody vineyard views, head to Furioso Vineyards (8415 NE Worden Hill Road, Dundee; www.furiosovineyards.com), named “one of…

    Camping is vastly improved with a pie from Beckie’s Cafe.
    Explore Oregon, Travel Spotlight

    Beckie’s Cafe: A Historic Oregon Gem

    A long-time favorite in the Umpqua National Forest written by Joni Kabana Who would have thought back in 1926 that a small cafe located minutes from Crater Lake National Park would survive recessions, change of ownerships and even a pandemic? Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Beckie’s Cafe—in addition to host Union Creek Resort—has been a beloved destination for many sojourners, even as far back when Union Creek was an important camping spot on the long stretches of trails connecting early settlements with Crater Lake. Zane Grey, Jack London and Herbert Hoover purportedly have made stops there and mingled among patrons, in addition to many repeat connoisseurs. “Beckie” was actually Ed Beckelhymer, who opened the cafe and passed the torch to his wife, Cecil, also becoming known as “Beckie,” until she passed during the late 1960s. A few recipes might have changed over the years with new owners,…