Posts Tagged With: outdoors

Summer is well underway! We’ve been enjoying it with our favorite activities in the area like camping, hiking, and of course the Enchanted Forest (we got to go for free this year thanks to the latest art they commissioned from Chris). Lately he and I have been working on projects like painting our newly built 2-story shed and doing the footwork to renew our professional licenses. This last week most of our kids went to our church’s little summer camp (out at the property where we got married), and I led around a group of elementary school kids, along with two 7th-grade helpers. Adorable!

I realized earlier this year that I’ve never put together a list of the best things to do / places to go here. Whether you live in Eugene or Springfield and want to try something new, or you’re planning to visit the area and want to do something you can’t do just anywhere, check out this post for my recommendations. Or visit https://www.eugenecascadescoast.org/, Lane County’s official travel & visitor information site. They have a visitor’s center in downtown Eugene with lots of great brochures and travel guides as well as locally-themed merchandise. You can even buy postcards with my friend and local writer/artist Tyler Burgess’ unique art on them!

The hard part for this post is narrowing down a list. There are so many great things to do and places to go! I’ll list 10 different types of activities with some options of places to do them. I’m sticking to the cities of Eugene and Springfield and the few small towns nearest to them because otherwise this post will be insanely longer than it is already. Feel free to skim and skip around to the activities that interest you. I will post (old and new) photos I’ve taken for at least the first section. And I may edit the post every so often, too, so feel free to take a fresh look at it sometime down the road. Also, please leave comments about places I mentioned or didn’t include!

A. (1) Sightseeing and Touring Unique Eugene/Springfield things:

1. Explore Skinner’s* Butte: (not to be confused with the much larger Spencer’s Butte just south of the city) for all kinds of fun, plus views of Eugene and surrounding mountains. Activities to do there: A) Watch people climb the basalt columns (or go climbing there yourself!) on the west side of the hill; B) Let the kids loose at Riverplay, a great playground at the base on the river (north) side of the hill; C) Take a tour of the Shelton-McMurphy-Johnson House**, an impressive Victorian mansion (south side); D) Hike or drive to the summit for views of the city’s landmarks and surrounding mountains and the Giant O, but be aware that if the drive is open, there will be people smoking pot at the top. If you hike from the farthest east trailhead on the north (river) side of the hill, you’ll see an old stone chimney from a CCC-era lodge. Hike straight up from the south side to see the Shelton-McMurphy-Johnson house. If you hike around the top of the butte on the Mid-Elevation Trail, you’ll pass the Giant E, and the kids can slide on this one because it’s barely above the ground. My 9yo and his buddy slid down it about 50 times in a row recently.
2. Drive or walk on a self-guided mural tour. Along Main Street and South A in Springfield, you’ll mostly see Simpsons murals by Bayne Gardner on the sides of buildings, but also murals of other themes by various artists. There are a few places of business with murals of mountains painted indoors by my husband. In downtown and UofO campus area in Eugene, you’ll see all kinds of different murals by various artists, including a neat one of flowers and Spencer’s Butte by the aforementioned Bayne Gardner and an inspiring MLK Jr. one. My favorites in Eugene are farther south on Willamette Street: one by Afghan muralist/graffiti artist Shamsia Hassani and one of Eugene’s history on the side of the old trolley stop. Oh, and the newest Bayne Gardner one is down there, too: a Nicolas Cage portrait on the side of an apartment building. So funny!
3. Run on, to, or by one of Tracktown’s official or famous sights: Hayward Field, where Olympic trials and track & field world championships happen, Pre’s Rock, an informal shrine on a hillside to track hero Steve Prefontaine, and Pre’s Trail, a scenic running trail dedicated to said track hero. There are other great running paths in Eugene, too. Brag time: I ran at Hayward Field for a district track meet when I was in middle school! Long before it was renovated to its current stadium. So of course I got a selfie when I attended the Olympic trials several years ago with my mom and visiting aunt and uncle.
4. Cascades Raptor Center: a small “nature center and wildlife hospital” for raptor birds in the hills of South Eugene. I’ve been there twice: once with my mom, and later with my husband and our kids. We got to see hawks, falcons, and the Harry Potter snowy owl. So fun!
5. Explore scenic city parks: In addition to many parks mentioned in various themed sections below, there are some neat unique parks in the area. My favorite in Eugene is the Wayne Morse Family Farm, the historic home of a U.S. Senator, complete with a nice covered picnic area and hiking trails through woods. My favorite in Springfield is the underrated Willamette Heights Park, which has nice views of the south valley and hills as well as a small hiking trail. Photos for both of those parks are on my spring/wildflower posts earlier this year.

B. (2) Outdoor Recreation:

1. Hiking: The Eugene/Springfield area is full of hiking trails that make you forget you’re in (or on the edge of) a city! A) Spencer’s Butte in South Eugene is a local favorite – I think I’ve been up it at least 100 times starting in high school; B) Mt. Pisgah, in the Howard Buford County Park between Eugene, Springfield, and Pleasant Hill, is the next favorite, and like Spencer’s, has a summit with views of the High Cascades and the Coast Range; C) The Ridgeline Trails of South Eugene are mostly easier forest paths with the exception of Spencer’s Butte, but their Mt. Baldy trail offers a short hike to summit views of the city, and the Wild Iris Ridge trail is part of that network but in West Eugene; D) The Thurston Hills Recreation Area in East Springfield has two trailheads for choice in hike experiences (Chris and I did a thru-hike of them recently and discovered it’s way longer than we realized); E) Last but not least, the trail at Springfield’s Willamette Heights Park is short but offers lovely views.
2. Biking: There are multiple offerings, but the most popular are the Ruth Bascom Riverbank Path that runs on both sides of the river through much of Eugene and extending into Springfield on the north bank, the Middle Fork Path between Dorris Ranch and Clearwater Park, the downhill mountain bike trails and the flat but long Multi-Use Path in the Thurston Hills Recreation area in Springfield, and the Amazon Path that winds westward through Eugene along Amazon Creek.
3. Rock Climbing: For a real outdoor experience, climb the basalt columns on the west side of Skinner’s Butte. You’ll need your own gear. If it’s raining or you don’t have gear, head to Crux Climbing Gym for roped climbing and bouldering, or to Elevation or The Circuit for just bouldering. All locations are in Eugene. There are neat basalt columns near the summit of the Thurston Hills Recreation Area, but they are not equipped for climbing.
4. Floating & Boating: It seems like most of the Lane County Parks are boat ramps along one river or another. Whether you have a canoe, kayak, or a simple inner tube to float the river, summer days are great here. Please be safe and wear a life jacket as the river is deeper and more powerful than it looks.
5. Swimming Holes: There are many along the rivers and of course in the reservoirs in the small towns around here. My family has a favorite swimming hole, but for the sake of keeping it from overcrowding (from my thousands of subscribers, ha!), I’m keeping it secret. Yup, it’s that good. Other good spots include Hendricks Bridge County Park on the McKenzie just east of Springfield and spots along the Willamette River, such as in the Eastgate Woodlands in Springfield across from Roaring Rapids in Eugene, the river rocks area below Beltline Hwy in the Santa Clara area (that’s the first one I remember visiting as a kid), and a couple places in the Howard Buford County Park (one in the Arboretum area and one at the end of a hike from the East trailhead parking). And of course there are parks around Fern Ridge Reservoir with swimming areas. And again, please wear a life jacket or be very aware of the depth and speed of the water where you are.

C. (3) Stroll in Beautiful Public Flower or Tree Gardens:

1. Hendricks Park‘s rhodedendron garden near the UofO campus is my favorite, with hillside trails to walk and grassy meadows for picnicking.
2. Owen Rose Garden is a romantic spot right on the river, full of varieties of roses and a really old, epic tree.
3. Mt. Pisgah Arboretum in Howard Buford County Park is a tree garden. Honestly, it just looks like the surrounding forest to me, but has interpretive signs and neat bridges and lots of trails.
4. Dorris Ranch in Springfield has trees, too, but this one is an orchard. A filbert (hazelnut) orchard, to be exact. It’s the oldest working filbert farm in the USA. There are trails through the various parts of the farm as well as through the forest next to it, eventually following the Willamette River. There is a small lodge that can be rented for events. My husband’s nephew got married there. And I once officiated a wedding during the pandemic down in the orchard!
5. Eugene Japanese-American Art Memorial behind the Hult Center – this tiny hidden gem is more of an historical memorial than a scenic garden, but is very beautiful in spring and fall. It honors the people who were sent to internment camps here in the USA during WWII just for being Japanese.

D. (4) Human-Made Recreation:

1. Disc Golf: Eugene has several courses, including Alton Baker Park, Stewart Pond Disc Golf in Bertelsen Nature Park, and Westmoreland, and Springfield has Clearwater Park. There are also courses in the surrounding small towns.
2. Mini-Golf: Both of the Eugene/Springfield area’s Putt-Putt places are outdoorsy-themed rather than having windmills and castles and such, complete with real waterfalls. Camp Putt in Glenwood (part of Springfield’s parks system) is outdoors and beautiful. If it’s raining, head to West Eugene to Putters for a similar course but indoors. There is also an arcade, indoor playground, and laser-tag place there, and a bowling alley next door.
3. Axe-Throwing: Oregon Axe in the Kelly Booth Center near downtown Springfield and offers a unique pastime. My husband loved it.
4. Escape Rooms: I’ve only been to the one in Springfield, Portal Adventures. It was neat but not really my cup of tea.
5. Childrens & Science Museums: Science Factory by Autzen Stadium (called Wistec when I was a kid, complete with planetarium that now just shows videos) and the Children’s Museum in the Valley River Center Mall are both great places for kids with hands-on exhibits and educational things to play with.
6. Swimming Pools: “Splash” is the big fancy place in Springfield with wave pool and waterslide, but I prefer Amazon pool in South Eugene (outdoors, with a regular waterslide and “the Scary Slide”) or Willamalane pool, which is only open for rec swims once a week but has way less crowds and still has a waterslide. Other public pools include Echo Hollow, Emerald Park / River Road Park, and Sheldon pool.

E. (5) Eating: The Eugene/Springfield area has some fantastic food and drinks, or at least good food in neat places.

1. Café Yumm! (Exclamation point is part of name) – Quintessential Eugene hippie food. This small chain started in Eugene and has expanded around the state. Its key ingredient is Yumm! Sauce, a thick delicious sauce that is layered into their bowls full of rice and beans and all kinds of other good stuff. My favorite is the Edamame Yumm Bowl. Pro tip: you can buy their Yumm Sauce at local grocery stores and make your own Yumm bowls, or even use it as a condiment on sandwiches.
2. Public House: Formerly a beautiful church with stained-glass windows, it now houses several eateries and drinkeries (is that a word?). I’d say the best atmosphere in Springfield.
3. Mazzi’s/Hideway Bakery: Bakery/Coffeeshop by day, and fancy Italian restaurant by night, this is one of my favorite places to go for ambience (cozy by day, romantic by night). There are two fireplaces, and it’s possible to get a spot by them in a morning. I like to go there to journal or read. And eat orange cardamom pinwheels if I get there in time before they sell out.
4. Fisherman’s Market: Delicious seafood in a very casual setting near the Whiteaker neighborhood in Eugene. They used to have an outpost at Public House, but now I think they have one at a food truck spot farther out in Springfield.
5. Pint Pot: Cozy family-friendly Irish pub in South Eugene. Good food and sometimes live Irish music. They even have a corner cordoned off for a kids’ playplace.
6. Bier Stein: German beer and some food, a fireplace, and fun. We went to their Oktoberfest celebration a year or two ago, and Chris joined in with the bier stein holding competition.
7. Old Nick’s: Very Eugene! Fun for fans of fantasy/gothic/steampunk fiction. Decorated accordingly, some of the menu items are inspired by Lord of the Rings.
8. Bepe & Gianni’s: A nice Italian restaurant in the UO Campus area.
9. Eugene Saturday Market: Food tents galore! Next to live music. My favorite is of course the Afghan food tent, run by a gentleman named Abi that lived in Germany for many years after leaving Afghanistan. His kabuli palau is full of cardamom goodness and tender chicken. He used to have a food cart that sold it alongside bratwurst, and my mom said his brats were as good as what she ate in Germany!
10. Food Trucks: There are a bunch of food truck “villages” around the area. Some of them are for the office workers by day, but others are for after work hours. My favorite is in downtown Eugene.
11. Purlieu: Casual little French restaurant in South Eugene. We went there once for a date.
12. Craft Breweries: Planktown, Falling Sky, Ninkasi, and a whole slew of others. This is hipster land, after all!
13. The Old Spaghetti Factory: Okay, this one is a national chain not from the immediate local area, but it was started in Portland, so we’ll forgive it. And it’s at the location of the old Oregon Electric Station restaurant, a Eugene favorite for ambience and history.
14. Ta Ra Rin and Tasty Thai: My two favorite Thai restaurants. Ta Ra Rin has restaurants in both Eugene and Springfield.
15. Junkyard Dogs: An outdoor hot dog stand in Junction City that got famous after being featured on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. I’ve only been there once and Chris hasn’t been there at all, so we’ll probably visit this summer.
16. Tacovore: A very popular walk-up-to-order Mexican restaurant in the Whit.
17. Happy Cow: A casual burger place in South Eugene that is very affordable. I get their Bulgogi burger and sweet potato fries.
18. Joey’s Pizza: This is the oldest pizza shop in Springfield and is family-owned. Their best-seller is the Beer Driver Special, full of savory meats. For a discount on certain pizzas, visit on your letter day (1st of the month for people whose last name starts with A, 2nd for B, etc.).
19. Roaring Rapids: We like this place more for the view than the food, but the food is good, too. It’s Springfield’s only restaurant that is right on the river. Very family-focused, with outdoorsy decor, seating and a grassy area outside, and a big carousel. We like to sit at a table outside overlooking the river. In the summer, they host live music bands outdoors.
20. And yet more local/unique pizza places: Mezza Luna, Coburg Pizza Company, Pegasus Pizza, and Tracktown Pizza – All are good! Look them up.
21. And yet more riverfront restaurants: Sweet Waters On The River and McMenamin’s North Bank of Eugene: Sweet Waters is in the Valley River Inn; North Bank used to be a more fancy restaurant, but the Portland chain McMenamin’s took over several years ago so it’s more casual now.
22. Desserts: Sweet Life, Metropol Bakery, Provisions Marketplace: All are delicious. I feel like I’m forgetting some important dessert shops, so please put them in the comments!
23. Ice Cream: Prince Pücklers, Handel’s, Salt & Straw, and La Michoacana. Prince Pückler’s in the UO campus area has been around the longest and I would say is the most popular.

F. (6) Concerts/Shows Venues:

1. Cuthbert Amphitheater: An outdoor concert venue in Alton Baker Park. I’ve never been in it, but my mom saw the Beach Boys there.
2. Hult Center for the Performing Arts: This is the big fancy one in downtown Eugene that has operas and Broadway musicals, and best of all the Bach Festival.
3. Wildish Theater: A smaller venue in Springfield that hosts plays, old movies, concerts, and even high school graduations. They’re great.
4. Very Little Theater: A community theater in South Eugene that has great plays and musicals. My friend Sarah has directed plays and designed sets for them. Chris and I went to see Murder On The Orient Express there, and it was our favorite version of it (Sorry, Kenneth Branaugh; we liked yours, too!). I think my favorite is still Spamalot, for which I was a seating host and got to see it for free.
5. Shedd Institute for the Arts: The old First Baptist Church of Eugene now hosts concerts and shows. The only thing I’ve seen in there was this year’s speeches and things after the MLK Jr. march.
6. Actor’s Cabaret: Another community theater, this one in downtown Eugene. I think I saw my high school friend Paul in “Fame!” there when I was college-age.
7. McDonald Theater: Formerly a movie theater in downtown Eugene (I sat in the balcony for the very first Jurassic Park movie when I was in high school, and my husband saw it there, too), nowadays it hosts mostly concerts but also other events. My stepsister-in-law was in a beauty pageant there once.
8. “Shakespeare In The Park” at the Amazon Community Center in South Eugene: The lawn behind the building becomes a natural amphitheater for the Bard’s work on weekends every summer. I’ve seen a couple here, and it’s free fun!

G. (7) Shopping:

1. 5th Street Market: From fancy shops to Mecca’s secondhand art supplies, this is a unique shopping area. The official 3-story 5th Street Market building is historic and beautiful, complete with a fountain and outdoor balconies overlooking it, and lots of great food options. Across the street to the west is a strip of shops including Mecca. Across the street to the east is the new 5th Street Alley with a covered walkway and local shops such as Euphoria Chocolate and Mountain Rose Herbs.
2. Oakway Center: An upscale shopping area of famous chain stores that has better food than clothes, in my opinion. But then again, I’m more of a thrift store girl than an Old Navy one. I love eating Café Yumm! food in the courtyard area in the summer. But if I do shop there, it’s usually Trader Joes.
3. Springfield’s antique stores – There are lots! I haven’t explored them yet, but I think my mom has.
4. Valley River Center: A large traditional indoor shopping mall with all the stores you’d expect (Bath & Body Works, Macy’s, etc.). This was where my girlfriends and I hung out after school when we were young. My kids prefer the Round 1 arcade at the end of one of the legs of it.
5. The Shoppes at Gateway: There are a number of big-box stores here now as well as my family’s favorite movie theater, but when I was a teenager, it it was a full indoor mall with a large arcade and food court, lots of small shops like Bath & Body Works, and a movie theater that later showed second-run movies for $1.50. Now the only thing you can reach from the big halls inside of the old mall building is the newer theater.

H. (8) Farms & Vineyards: For this section, we’ll have to go a little farther out of Eugene & Springfield, but worth it.

1. Johnson Farm: A major attraction in the fall due to the unique hayride: you get to throw small pumpkins at targets along the way, and then there is a slingshot area for more pumpkin throwing. Add to that a hay maze, corn maze, and other festivities, and you’ve got crowds for good reason!
2. Thistledown Farm: Between North Eugene / Santa Clara and Junction City is a beautiful farming community that includes Thistledown and the now-defunct Lone Pine Farm as well as other farms. I think Thistledown was the first open-to-the-public farm I ever went to as a kid.
3. Northern Lights: This Christmas tree farm near Pleasant Hill also has a huge corn maze in the fall.
4. Charles Little Flower Farm: Rows of flowers at the base of Mt. Pisgah are open for U-pick, while a neat wooden store has great flower gifts and things for sale. Photo at end of article.
5. Detering Orchard: A popular place to pick apples or buy cider in the fall, with fun activities for kids.
6. Herrick Farm: Near the Hendricks Bridge County Park just east of Springfield, this small farm has a hayride out to a pumpkin patch in the fall and a few other things to do, and of course a farm stand with produce.

I. (9) Museums:

1. Museum of Natural & Cultural History – I’ve attended teacher professional development here and taken my high school social studies students here as well. Very educational.
2. Oregon Air & Space Museum – Located by the Eugene airport, this museum has full-sized aircraft from various eras and lots of neat artifacts. I went there with my dad for Veterans Day one year, and I think he ended up donating some neat things that he’d collected during his piloting days.
3. Springfield Museum – Chris and I have only seen what you can see from the front window in this small downtown locale, but they frequently change up the display and it looks neat.
4. Art Museums – I believe the UofO has two of them, but haven’t been to other.

J. (10) Sports Events: I previously mentioned checking out Tracktown’s track-related things to see (track events at Hayward Field are a must), but Eugene has other sports, too! Come watch a game if you’re around. Go, Ducks!

1. Autzen Stadium: Home of the University of Oregon (American) football team.
2. Matthew Knight Arena: Home of the Ducks women’s and men’s basketball teams. The women’s team is fantastic, and I am glad I got to see Sabrina Ionescu play here.
3. To watch the Ducks or local minor-league team Eugene Emeralds play baseball, head to the baseball court next to Autzen. The Ems used to have their own stadium in South Eugene, but it is now a soccer field for youth sports.
4. Soccer: also next to Autzen is the soccer stadium, home of the Ducks women’s team.

Fellow locals or visitors to the area, what did I miss? What are your favorite things to do or places to visit in the Eugene/Springfield area?

*Officially, Eugene’s most famous hills are named “Skinner Butte” and “Spencer Butte”, but most locals add an apostrophe and “s” to them to call them “Skinner’s Butte” and “Spencer’s Butte.”

** Fun fact: several years ago I made my own sample “senior project” to guide my 12th graders. I told them I plan to be a tour guide when I retire. For the job shadow requirement of the project, I got permission to follow around a docent at the Shelton-McMurphy-Johnson House for a day. It was a blast! My favorite part was a huge dollhouse of the mansion that they had up in the top floor. They also host events there throughout the year, like tea parties.