18 Places Where You Just Have to Stop and Smell the Flowers

"Visitors often flock to Oregon’s Willamette Valley to sip pinot noir in wine country or tour the sights of the Rose City. But come early spring each year, it’s the beautiful blooming tulips that steal the show. One of the best places to enjoy the spectacle is the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm in Woodburn, about 45 minutes outside Portland. It is one of the largest tulip farms in the U.S. Northwest, with 40 acres of flowers that erupt in a rainbow of color each year. Strolling through the neatly cultivated fields, you’re welcomed by row after row of bright pink, red, white, yellow, purple, orange, and multicolored petals. The farm has around 80 varieties of tulips that are organized into sections of color, a scene made even more picture-perfect by the idyllic backdrop of Mount Hood in the distance. The family farm hosts an annual spring festival to show off its colorful crop each year, opening up the flowering fields to the public for about a month between late March and early May. Visitors are invited to wander through the tulip fields, camera in tow, or to tour the landscape by tractor or even hot air balloon. The working farm also sells tulip bulbs, cut flowers, and potted plants to take home." - ATLAS_OBSCURA