Waterfront Park

Waterfront Park is a must visit for everyone, whether you are only in Portland for a few days or a life-long resident. The park provides lovely views of the Willamette River and priceless perspective on Portland’s many bridges. Running nearly the whole distance of downtown Portland, it is easily accessible and also makes for a relaxing lunch or picnic stop.

Despite its popularity, the park never feels overly crowded. With its long, narrow construction, you can bike or walk while taking in some of the best views downtown Portland has to offer. Minutes from shopping and hotels, Portland visitors can come down for some great free fun.

At lunchtime, you will see many workers from local companies come down to enjoy their hour of freedom. It is also a perfect place to have a relaxing coffee or conversation with a friend. With long open grass areas, on sunny days you will see plenty of people with blankets and books soaking in the rays.

While its official name is Governor Tom McCall Waterfront Park, locals just refer to it as Waterfront Park. Governor McCall instrumented many of the policies in place today that helped to create this and other public spaces around Oregon. According to its website, the park’s opening in 1978 completed nearly 75 years of work to create “a greenway scheme for the riverbanks in order to ensure their preservation for future generations.”

In the summertime, be prepared for the park to be busy during major city-wide festivals. The park is home to a number of yearly celebrations, including the Bite of Portland, Rose Festival, Portland Blues Festival, and a Fourth of July Fireworks show.  While all are great events, the park can be very congested during them and might not live up to its carefree personality.

Up and down the park are a couple of different options for exploring the river. River tours are conducted by private companies, but are usually not too expensive and can expand on the views you already see from walking riverside.

The park complements anyone’s day. Whether you are searching for exercise, relaxation or just a nice place to sit and read a book, the Waterfront Park offers something for every visitor.

HelloPortland Tip: From March through December, the Portland Saturday Market is held at pavilion on Park grounds. Great for local crafts, produce and food.

- by William Crane, Portland Reporter for HelloMetro  (Click to leave a message)

William Crane

William Crane is an accomplished print and online journalist (http://www.william-crane.com) His work covers a variety of topics including features, local community news, sports, music, and political/social issues. Graduating from Seattle University with a B.A. in Journalism, William's writing has appeared in a variety of different publications including the Stranger, Capitol Hill Times, the Skanner, Backfire Magazine, and the Internationalist.