Gorge and Central OR Itinerary
Curious what you guys think of this itinerary below. The focus is hiking and scenery (not really interested in anything else haha). Dates are October 14-18. The flight is booked, lodging is not yet.
Some notes- we are early birds and can be out of our hotel by 8am the latest. We are in good shape and can hike at a 2-4 mile/hour pace (depending on stops and inclines). We like to maximize the day and will hike until sunset, especially since the days are shorter by then. Finally, I'm a photography enthusiast. Not one of those that spends over an hour in one place trying to get the perfect shot, but I take a lot of pictures and might spend a few minutes on the long exposure shots for waterfalls (my wife gets slightly annoyed at times). That said, I'm curious about fall foliage. See my questions on Silver Falls below.
Day 1, arrive PDX at 10:15AM. Head towards Hood River. The list below are just stops unless hiking mentioned. Since most of them are stops, I think we can do them in a 6 hour period from say noon to 6pm.
-Latoural falls
-Wahkeena falls? OR Wahclella falls (2 mile hike)
-Multnomah falls
-Elowah and upper falls- 2.5 mile hike
-OR, Dry Creek Falls if there's time (instead of Elowah)- 4.5 mile hike
Night at Hood River
Day 1 ALTERNATE- go Towards Mt Hood and hike around and spend the night in that area. Best fall foliage hikes?
Day 2, drive towards Smith Rock SP with sights on the way
-Tamawamas falls- 3.5 mile hike
-Trillium Lake
-Crooked river area (a short 2-3 mile hike?),
-Smith Rock for sunset. Would like to focus on my photography here.
Overnight in or near Redmond
Day 3- Most of the day in Smith Rock State Park. Those Crooked river hikes outside of the park look pretty amazing though so might squeeze one of those in if there's time.
Overnight in or near Redmond
Day 4-
Drive to Silver Falls (2.5 hour drive) and spend the day there. Any stops/short hikes on the way or should we dedicate all non-driving time to hiking in Silver Falls (thinking 6-7 hours spent in the park)? This is would be another photography opportunity here. How's the fall foliage in mid-October?
We may have dinner with a friend in Corvallis which would add another hour of driving. Otherwise, we'll stay nearby.
Day 5- Head back to PDX, but flight is not until 3pm. Anything to do on the way or in Portland that would involve fall foliage?
Any feedback is much appreciated! Thanks!