Conscious by Chloé

Chloé Lepeltier - Conscious By Chloé

A Sustainable Lifestyle Blog focusing on Zero Waste, Slow Living, and Ethical Fashion.

A Weekend in the Columbia River Gorge

green trees on mountain during daytime

The other week, Octave and I had to take a trip to Portland to pick up something that's gonna change our lives (but that's a whole other subject).

We had a blast in the city, eating at new restaurants, catching up with old friends, and visiting our favorite spots.

On the way back to Central Oregon, I suggested we take the long way back home through the Columbia River Gorge. Our friends recently moved there and I really wanted to see with my own eyes the beautiful house they built.

I also had many, many many spots on my "to visit" list and added a few that my friend Jenna, owner of Lost River Apothecary, recommended.

Lodging

We got to stay at Jenna and Tal's place in Lyle and woke up to the most striking view of Mount Adams, but I found a few cool places you could stay at during your trip:

Hood River

White Salmon

Bingen

Lyle

Food & Drink

We've had the most amazing food during our stay, and I wish I could have stayed longer to try more spots!

Our faves so far: Soča and White Salmon Baking!

Hood River

White Salmon

Lyle

I was sad I didn't get to try the pastries at White Salmon Baking but got to eat their scrumptious pain au chocolat at Confluence Café. Extra points for the river view from the terrace!

Shops

Besides visiting our friends Tal and Jenna, my goal was to hit all the cute (vintage) stores in the gorge. And boy did the gorge deliver!

Hood River

The most stunning shop in town. Perfect clothing curation (I almost bought a lacy dress) and some furniture in the back room.

Laura's new shop. I've visited every shop she's run since 2015 and this new endeavor didn't disappoint. I'm sad I didn't get to see her, but her shop girl was the sweetest and I came back home with lots of Mexican snacks for the road (that's not what's mainly sold there, but that's what I felt like shopping, lol)

I didn't go in because I wasn't really in the mood for shopping clothes anymore, but the selection looked on point!

White Salmon

I mostly wanted to stop by to take a picture of the sign for Octave's nephew Marcel, but was so glad I stopped by to see the amazing curation from the owner, Amy. We got to chat for a bit and got along really well!

Bingen

Everyone knows everyone in this little community and I love it! On my way out of Sun Sun -where I got a smiley pair of socks and some incense- I bumped into Jenna, who was on her way there for a restock!

This spot is what I picture when I think about an antique store, and its basement reminded me of Cargo in Portland!

Local makers

I visited a market hosted at MoonMountain Highway and got to discover the work of amazing local makers:

And I'm excited to visit this spot one day:

We had already visited the gorge quite a few times, to go hiking, and mountain biking, but had never had a chance to really slow down and spend time there and meet the locals.

It's the perfect balance between being immersed in nature while still being less than an hour and a half away from a major city and airport.

I can't wait to go back, and maybe finally give kiteboarding a try!

Have you visited the gorge already? What was your favorite spot?