Unusual Attractions Around Portland
An Overview of Portland
Portland is a strange, thriving, artistic city and the largest urban center in Oregon. Portland is known for its vast, well-tended green spaces, breathtaking nearby mountains, innovative art scene and numerous biking routes. The city serves as an important hub for culinary arts and other cultural events in the region. As one of the strangest and most compelling cities in the United States, there are many unusual attractions around Portland.
Unusual Attractions Around Portland
The Witch’s Castle
Found in Oregon’s Forest Park, this is a stone house which was gradually taken over by layers of moss and graffiti. The Witch’s Castle attracted several local legends spotted with stories about murders. The structure, deep in the forest, is a surprisingly pretty feature of Portland.
The Grotto
This unique Portland attraction is a combination between a 62-acre Catholic shrine and botanical garden. The site includes a cave which was carved from a basalt cliffside. Within, there’s a stone altar and depiction of Mary holding Christ following his crucifixion. The botanical gardens themselves are well-tended and serene.
Cathedral Park
This is a large, beautiful and central park in Portland, best known for its picturesque bridge made of pointed arches overlooking the nearby Williamette River.
Mills Ends Park
Covering a grand total of 452 square inches, this is a tiny urban park with a single tree in a small circle. Holding the World Record as the world’s smallest park, the park is surrounded with a small ring of clovers. A local legend states that the park is home to a family of leprechauns.
The Hat Museum
This is a surprisingly in-depth museum tour led by guides showcasing the various hats and styles of headwear found over 300 years of history. The museum requires a reservation in advance.
The Paul Bunyan Statue
One of the great folklore figures found in the United States is Paul Bunyan, a gigantic man who strode the Western frontier as a lumberjack alongside his companion, an equally enormous blue ox named Babe. There’s a 31-foot-tall statue of concrete and metal honoring the mythical logger in the Kenton neighborhood of Portland.
The Weather Machine
This strange public artwork is made from a kinetic bronze sculpture and columnar machine. Standing around 30-feet tall as a pole with an orb, this machine makes a weather prediction each day at noon, estimating the forecast for the next 24 hours.
Collins Beach UFO Boat
For those seeking out the truly odd, this is an abandoned, public-art boat shaped like a UFO resting on a clothing optional beach.
The Wishing Tree
This attraction is a horse chestnut tree hung with hundreds of papers stating hopes and dreams. The entire tree holds wishes from hundreds of visitors. There are tags and markers on site, so visitors only need to bring their personal wishes.
Glowing Greens PDX
Glowing Greens PDX is a surprisingly artistic indoors minigolf course with many glow-in-the-dark decorations.
Multnomah Falls
Located outside the city limits, Multnomah Falls is an astonishingly beautiful 611-foot waterfall thundering into the Columbia River Gorge.
Shanghai Tunnels
The Old Portland Underground, often known as the Shanghai Tunnels, is a network of subterranean passageways primarily centered around the Old Town Chinatown district of the city. The tunnels were once used as part of an underground smuggling ring, providing a covert method for sneaking goods into one of the most dangerous ports in the United States.
Portland’s Living Room
Though this plaza is colloquially known as Portland’s Living Room, this public space is officially called Pioneer Courthouse Square. This is a central, downtown urban park used for numerous community events and celebrations.
Zelda Wisdom
Once upon a time, there was a bulldog named Zelda who was often dressed in human attire, eventually gaining enough fame to make an appearance with Oprah. Zelda has a statue at the entrance of Portland’s Heathman Hotel to commemorate the building’s pet-friendly policies.
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