We went on a day trip to this town from Portland. It is 98 miles north of Portland and a drive of less than 2 hours. Located in the northwest corner of Oregon and founded in 1811, Astoria is the oldest city in the state and was the first permanent American settlement west of the Rocky Mountains. Astoria is named after John Jacob Astor, a New York financier, who in 1811 sent fur traders to the area and the trading post of Fort Astoria was established.
- Astoria Column
- Astoria-Megler bridge
- Young River Falls
- Downtown Astoria
- Lewis and Clark National Historic Park
Astoria Column atop Coxcomb Hill – Astoria is on Colombia River and one of the popular sites to visit here is the Astoria Column. Parking costs $5 and the entry ticket is good for the full year. Alternatively, you can park near the Cathedral tree trail and hike to the top which is about 1.6 miles each way. We hiked the beautiful Cathedral tree trail through lush green forest. Sensible shoes recommended as the tree roots along the path makes it uneven.
Astoria Column was built in 1926 and the painted murals on the column outlines major events in Oregon’s early history from 1792-1800s.
Astoria-Megler bridge – Once you are at the top, in addition to viewing the Astoria Column, you are rewarded with a 360-degree view of the city, Columbia River, and surrounding forests. You can see the Colombia River merging with the Pacific Ocean here. You can also see the Astoria-Megler bridge which extends across Colombia river from Oregon into Washington State and is 4.1 miles long.
We then drove on the 4.1 mile long bridge from Astoria in Oregon to Megler in Washington state.
Young River Falls – Youngs River Falls is powerful fall and popular for swimming in the summertime. We visited this place in November and the weather was great. The hike to the falls from the parking lot (free) was a short 0.3 miles.
Other places to visit in Astoria
- Downtown Astoria – Easily walkable with restaurants, cafes, and local shops
- Lewis and Clark National Historic Park – Fort Clatsop – Clatsop County was the final ending journey for the famous Lewis and Clark’s expedition. They arrived in the winter of 1805 and stayed over the winter season on Clatsop land. The fort standing today is a replica made in 2006 and was redesigned from the notebook of Clark to match the floor plan of the original fort. There is a fee to visit this place.
- Astoria Movie Tour – Astoria and the surrounding area has been used in several popular Hollywood movies. You can do a a self-guided Astoria movie tour by first visiting the Oregon Film Museum. The museum has posters with the movie scenes filmed in Astoria listed below the posters. You can then drive around and find these places yourself.