Oregon Steam Punk Road Trip - Ashland Bound

Howdy Jamie,

Due to time constraints I need to use I-5 (for the most part) to get from Portland to Ashland and back again when I go in late August.

I know it's not a route you cover in your book (which I plan to buy), but do you have any random tips/recommendations or links/referrals to other good travel guides that would cover that area?

Imagine you are a steam-punk loving countercultural aged-out-of-hippie with a camera and a lust for all things old and crusty.

Bless you!

Sheila

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Hi Sheila --

Thanks for your nice note -- and it definitely doesn't stretch my imagination for me to think like a "steam-punk loving countercultural aged-out-of-hippie with a camera and a lust for all things old and crusty." I might just borrow that job title and put it on my business cards (if I had any business cards...)

Portland to Ashland -- nice part of the world. I come from California, so I'll start in the south and head north (and you're right -- I don't much about this area, though I do love the Cascades hot springs -- excellent for experiencing some real steam.)

I haven't been down I-5 for a while, but I know Jacksonville OR is very cool -- if you like 1880s buildings, which I suspect you do. Almost the entire town is a national historic landmark.

North of there, off I-5 in the hills above Jacksonville/Medford , there's the Oregon Vortex: http://www.oregonvortex.com/

And further north, Cottage Grove has a lot of nice covered bridges -- look here: http://www.cottagegrove.net/history/covered_bridges/ (The bridge shown above has been moved and rebuilt on the Oregon State campus at Corvallis...)

Thinking of Oregon college towns, Eugene is fun (though I haven't been there for 20 + years, so I can't offer many tips of where to find it).

Not much help, am I??

:-)

Hope you have fun, nevertheless.

Happy Trails, and thanks again for writing,



Jamie Jensen
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Road Trip USA