Phillip Z.
Yelp
Portland, Oregon is progressive on many fronts -- including its bicycling efforts. In short, it's a bicyclist's dream with miles of protected bike lanes taking you from neighborhood to neighborhood. But what is it like as a local? And more importantly, is there someone who could show us around its many hidden neighborhoods? Otherwise, I'm not afraid to admit it, I'd totally get us lost.
That's when I came across Around Portland Tours, which offers a wide range of tour options, including bike tours through the Columbia River Gorge to rides through Portland's east side to visit its famed food carts. We ended up going with their popular "Bike Around Portland Tour" -- a 3 hour ride through the neighborhoods Portlanders love the most. Okay, and it also included a doughnut stop. This pretty much convinced me it was the best tour for us. Negative calories I say!
Around Portland bike tours and their east side walking tours start at their shop at 833 SE Main Street #120. As a LA resident, I'm obsessed with parking. And it couldn't be any easier here. There is plenty of free street parking. Score!
After a brief intro, we were fitted with bikes and helmets. Sarah, who began the tour company 4 years ago, has been a bicycle evangelist for nearly 20 years. She's a storyteller at heart -- honing her skills from a long tradition of writing, from literary essays to a rich blogging career and a strong background in journalism.
Ironically, our originally scheduled guide, Ana, was stuck in traffic due to -- of all things -- bicyclists blocking the way. Oh yes, you know you're in Portland! Portland's annual Bridge Pedal is a community celebration of the city's iconic bridges and biking culture. Ana would eventually join us halfway through the ride, giving us the opportunity to hear 2 different perspectives of life in Portland.
In total, this ride runs anywhere from 8 to 11 miles. It's mostly flat and the time truly flies by. The first stop is just a quick ride from the shop and is a place we never knew existed. Ladd's Addition is a neighborhood that was specifically built as a planned community to keep the street cars out.
While many people think of Portland as the city of roses, I actually think of it as the city of doughnuts. You can see my true love of food shining through. Voodoo Doughnut, and its bright pink boxes, are on most tourists must-visit lists. But on this tour, you'll get to experience the doughnut shops that most locals will go to.
After battling the wild bike-congested traffic jam, our new guide Ana was able to take over the tour. At this point, we went single file to take on some incredible bike trails.
It was a great day out! In total, this tour is 3 hours in length. And they keep groups small with no more than 10 travelers. Total cost is $49 for each adult and $40 for children up to 12 years old. Each tour includes all of the equipment including bike helmets, bikes, an experienced guide and water.