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Pioneer Spirit: Grandparents and Grandchildren on the Oregon Trail

Program Number: 12434RJ
Start and End Dates:
7/7/2013 - 7/12/2013;
Duration: 5 nights
Location: Newberg, Oregon
Price starting at: $799.00 - Price may vary based on date, departure city
Program Type: Intergenerational
Intergenerational
Meals: 15; 5 Breakfasts, 5 Lunches, 5 Dinners    
Meal Options: Gluten Free; Low Salt; Vegetarian    

Program intended for grandchildren from 9 - 12 years of age.

Relive the dramatic epic and true-life stories of Manifest Destiny and the scramble to settle the Pacific Coast in what was then “Oregon Country.” Retrace the steps of the early pioneers on the last legs of their 2,000 mile trek. Numerous hands-on activities and visits to historic sites will engage you and your grandchild in the trials and tribulations of the early pioneers. Understand how the rich lands and the idea of a bi-coastal nation attracted those to the end of the Oregon Trail.




Highlights

• Spend a night in a rustic tent camp, preparing your meal over an open fire. Learn to maneuver a canoe like the early explorers.
• During a visit to a one-room school house learn about traditional games and crafts enjoyed by pioneer children. Ride the Timberline Ski Lift for an unforgettable experience on Mt. Hood.
• Board the “Columbia Sternwheeler” for an excursion on the Columbia River with expert instructors discussing how the pioneers plied the rivers for trade and transportation.



Activity Particulars

Walks up to two miles; elevations of 7,000 feet; some stairs.



Coordinated by Tilikum Retreat Center.




Newberg

The rich soil of the Willamette Valley, which has contributed to the region’s successful grape-growing industry, also made Newberg the final stop for many pioneers on the Oregon Trail. Quakers settled here, as well, and Herbert Hoover’s boyhood home is nearby.
Accommodations
Former family farm nestled among orchards and vineyards of the Willamette Valley converted into a retreat center; 92 acres of green meadows, a quiet lake for fishing or canoeing, wooded hiking trails. Most rooms contain single beds and private bath; no alcohol on site. One night in a Hood River Hotel. All meals served family-style with a touch of culinary flare.
Meals and Lodgings
   Tilikum Center for Retreats
  Newberg, OR 3 nights
   Comfort Suites
  Hood River, OR 1 night
   Tilikum Center for Retreats
  Newberg, OR 1 night
 Tilikum Center for Retreats
Type: Conference Center
  Description: Tilikum is in the rolling countryside, among hazelnut orchards and vineyards and is a year-round camp and retreat center. Formerly a family farm, Tilikum has a 15 acre lake, miles of hiking trails, outdoor activities and peaceful surroundings.
  Contact info: 15321 NE North Valley Road
Newberg, OR 97132 USA
phone: 503-538-2763
web: www.camptilikum.org
  Facility amenities: Spacious meeting rooms, inviting dining room with solarium, library, sitting room, game room. Comfortable sleeping rooms, coffee/tea available at all times. Tilikum is an alcohol-free facility, smoking permitted only in restricted outdoor areas. Wireless internet and phone for local calls and long-distance with card are available. Cell phone coverage is spotty and there is no television reception.
  Smoking allowed: No
  Bathroom: 13 rooms have private, attached bathrooms. Several rooms have private bathroom across the hall.
  Additional nights prior:  Tilikum is available for group bookings only.
  Check in time: 4:00 PM
  Additional nights after:  Tilikum is available for group bookings only.
  Check out time: 12:00 PM

 Comfort Suites
Type: Hotel
  Description: One hour east of Portland in the breathtaking Columbia River Gorge. Centrally located in Hood river.
  Contact info: 2625 Cascade Avenue
Hood River, OR 97031 USA
phone: 541-308-1000
web: www.choicehotels.com
  Room amenities: Cable TV, internet access, hair dryer, coffee maker, microwave, mini frigerator.
  Facility amenities: Fitness Center, sauna, spa and indoor heated pool. Deluxe breakfast included. Free newspaper, guest laundry.
  Smoking allowed: No
  Elevators available: Yes


Travel Details
  Start of Program:
Check in 4:00 PM. You will be staying at Tilikum Center for Retreats that night.
  End of Program:
Program ends at 12:00 noon. You will be staying at Tilikum Center for Retreats the night before.
  Required documents:
The Road Scholar Health & Safety Form is required.
  Parking availability:
No fee for parking. Please contact Tilikum for information on RV parking availability.
Transportation
To Start of Program
  Location:  Newberg, OR
  Nearest highway: Hwy 99W
  Nearest airport:  Portland International Airport
  From End of Program
  Location: Newberg, OR
    (Additional transportation information same as above)
Travel Details
 

Portland, OR

 

From Airport

 
 

Service:

 

Commercial Van/Shuttle
Tilikum Retreat Center
phone: 503-538-2763
Advanced Reservations Required

 

Per Person/One Way:

 

See comments below
Prices are subject to change.
 

Travel Time:

 

45 minutes - 1 hour 
   

Tilikum can provide transportation from PDX, Portland hotel, train and/or bus station to our facility. Request forms included in pre-program communication. Cost $60/couple, $35/single (may update). Specific pick up and drop off times are scheduled once we receive all participant times as we work to make it most convenient for everyone. Ideally, Sunday flights are scheduled to arrive early to mid afternoon. We are also able to pick up at area hotels for those who choose to arrive early.
 
Driving Directions
  From Interstate 5 Take Tualatin/Sherwood Exit number 289. Turn right and follow Tualatin/Sherwood Road five miles to Hwy 99W at Sherwood. Turn left, going southwest, for eight miles and drive through Newberg until you are on the west side of town. Turn north at the intersection of Hwy 99W and Hwy 240 (Chehalem Valley / Yamhill sign). Follow Hwy 240 for five miles. Turn right (north), onto Ribbon Ridge Road (a Tilikum Retreat Center sign is on your left). After one mile, bear left at the junction onto North Valley Road. Look for the Tilikum sign on the right (one mile).
Elevation Note: Thursday field trip to Mt. Hood including optional chairlift ride go to about 7000' in elevation.
The prices listed for commercial services and facilities that are not included in the program cost, such as airport shuttles or extra nights lodging, are subject to change without notice. Since Road Scholar cannot guarantee the accuracy of these prices, we strongly suggest contacting the companies directly for the most up-to-date information.


Daily Schedule

Day 1: Orientation and Introductions
(Sunday, July 7)

Note: This is your opportunity to begin friendships with other participants along with meeting your leaders.
   
 Arrive To: Registration and check-in begin at 4pm. We can typically accommodate some early arrivals.
 Dinner: Welcome dinner. Food Service at Tilikum: We strive to present our guests with outstanding customer service and top-quality food. We make this possible by preparing our food from scratch, utilizing the freshest local ingredients and herbs picked fresh from our garden. We are happy to accommodate your special dietary needs with advance notice. Meals will include homemade bread, from scratch pastries and desserts, local & freshly roasted coffees along with a variety of menus.
 Evening: Program orientation and introductions
   
Accommodations: Tilikum Center for Retreats
Meals Included: Dinner

Day 2: Fort Clatsop, Astoria Column
(Monday, July 8)

Note: We immediately travel up to the winter fort for Lewis and Clark's expedition on their arrival at the mouth of the Columbia River. Then climb the Astoria Column to get a birdseye view of the joining of the Columbia with the Pacific Ocean.
   
 Breakfast: In the dining room. Fresh coffee available around 6:30 am. Breakfast typically includes a starch such as honey wheat pancakes or French toast, scrambled eggs, local peppered bacon, fresh seasonal fruit platter, cereal bar* & 100% fruit juice along with coffee, tea and cocoa beverages. *Includes a variety of cold cereals and our famous seven-grain hot cereal.
 Morning: Field trip to Fort Clatsop and Astoria, OR. Fort Clatsop was the winter encampment for Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery from December 1805 to March 1806. The visitor center includes the re-created Fort Clatsop as built by the explorers, an interpretive center offering an exhibit hall, gift shop and an orientation film. Experience life in the fort through historical re-enactors.
 Lunch: Picnic Lunch, Fort Clatsop
 Afternoon: Astoria was the location of the first permanent American Settlement west of the Rockies. A trolley ride along the waterfront lets you see the center of early Astoria. The Astoria Column was erected in 1926 at an elevation of 600 feet atop Coxcomb Hill. It has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places since 1974, and was refurbished in 1995. This impressive Oregon Coast historical monument is the only one of its kind in the world! The column displays 14 scenes commemorating important events in the history of Astoria in chronological order. The mural scrolls around the 125-foot-high structure in an upward spiral direction, with the earliest scene at the base of the column. An interior 164-step spiral staircase leads to the top of a viewing platform with spectacular views. Return to Tilikum.
 Dinner: In the Tilikum dining room.
 Evening: Flora and fauna lake walk followed by video of the building of Timberline Lodge, Mount Hood.
   
Accommodations: Tilikum Center for Retreats
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 3: Fort Vancouver/Pioneer Crafts Overnight in a tent camp with dinner over an open fire.
(Tuesday, July 9)

Note: Why was Fort Vancouver so critical in the settling of the Oregon Territory? Displays and enactments will help you create your opinions of this important conflict between the British and United States. Then create your own games and crafts as children would have done during these early settlement years. End the day with cooking your dinner over an open campfire and sleeping in a rustic tent camp on Tilikum's North Ridge.
   
 Breakfast: In the dining room.
 Morning: Travel to Vancouver, WA to explore Fort Vancouver. As the administrative center and principal supply depot of the British Hudson's Bay Company's vast "Columbia Department," Fort Vancouver served as the hub of an extensive fur trading network utilizing two dozen posts, six ships, and about 600 employees during peak seasons, with an extensive geographic range of 700,000 square miles stretching from Russian Alaska to Mexican California, and from the Rocky Mountains to the Hawaiian Islands. Interactive tour includes visiting the blacksmith's shop, exploring the kitchen and living quarters of Hudson Bay Company leaders, and the Warehouse where furs are counted, weighed and bundled for shipment.
 Lunch: Picnic lunch at Fort Vancouver.
 Afternoon: Return to Tilikum for canoeing, swimming, fishing, visit barn animals.
 Dinner: Around the campfire at Tilikum's North Ridge tented camp.
 Evening: Setting up your campsite for the night. Pioneer crafts, games and activities including making humdingers and ball toss, learning to play jacks and marbles.
   
Accommodations: Tilikum Center for Retreats
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 4: Columbia River Gorge/Multnomah Falls/Bonneville Dam/Fish Ladders/Sternwheeler Ride
(Wednesday, July 10)

Note: Back-tracking Lewis and Clark we move up the mighty Columbia River Gorge, gaining an greater appreciation of the difficulties experienced by westward bound settlers. Imagine yourself in a dugout canoe as you ply the waters of the Columbia on board a large Sternwheeler vessel. Picture fishing for salmon from remaining native American fishing platforms.
   
 Breakfast: At the campsite
 Morning: Visit to Columbia River Gorge, Crown Point and Multnomah Falls. The Columbia River Gorge is a spectacular river canyon cutting the only sea-level route through the Cascade Mountain Range. It's 80 miles long and up to 4,000 feet deep with the north canyon walls in Washington State and the south canyon walls in Oregon State. The interpretive center at Crown Point's Vista House is located on the western end of the Historic Columbia River Highway. Multnomah Falls is the second-tallest year-round waterfall in the nation. The water of the Falls drops 620 feet from its origin on Larch Mountain.
 Lunch: Picnic Lunch at a park along the Columbia River.
 Afternoon: Explore Bonneville Dam and fish ladders. Bonneville Lock and Dam consists of several dam structures that together complete a span of the Columbia River between Oregon and Washington. The dam is located 40 miles east of Portland, Oregon, in the Columbia River Gorge. The primary functions of Bonneville Lock and Dam are electrical power generation and river navigation. The dam was built and is managed by the United States Army Corps of Engineers. Bonneville Lock and Dam is named for Army Capt. Benjamin Bonneville, an early explorer credited with charting much of the Oregon Trail. Count migrating salmon and other fish through windowed fish ladders. Experience the history of the Columbia River Gorge and learn about the Lewis and Clark Expedition on a cruise aboard the Columbia Gorge Sternwheeler. We board from Marine Park at Cascade Locks, in the heart of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. Enjoy the riverboat cruises on an authentic triple-deck paddle wheeler, providing 360 degrees of breathtaking vistas. View Native American tribes' legendary platforms where they have fished for centuries.
 Dinner: Dinner and overnight in Hood River.
 Evening: Relaxation and/or activity options in Hood River including indoor pool at hotel.
   
Accommodations: Comfort Suites
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 5: Travel through the Hood River Valley following the route of the Barlow Trail. Ride theTimberline Magic-Mile chairlift. Be a pioneer at Philip Foster Farm. Overnight in a tent camp with dinner over an open fire.
(Thursday, July 11)

Note: This is our day to walk in the tracks of the wagon trains coming around the majestic Mt Hood. You will experience life as a farm child on an early settlers farm in the recreated living historic Philip Foster Farm. End the day with cooking your dinner over an open campfire and sleeping in a rustic tent camp on Tilikum's North Ridge.
   
 Breakfast: At your leisure, many choices offered by the hotel.
 Morning: Travel to Mt. Hood National Forest. Stand on sections of the Oregon Trail/Barlow Road. See where wagons were lowered down Laurel Hill. Timberline Chairlift Ride on Mt. Hood and Class Discussion. The Barlow Road allowed thousands of Oregon Trail emigrants to travel overland to the Willamette Valley rather than risk floating the dangerous Columbia River. Travelers crossed through Summit Meadow and what is now the village of Government Camp, proceeding west toward the infamous Laurel Hill. The steepest section of the road was the Laurel Hill “Chute,” where wagons skidded down a treacherous grade.
 Lunch: Picnic Lunch at Tollgate Park. Tollgate Campground was originally constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps, and some historic features, such as rock fireplaces and a reconstructed picnic shelter still remain. The Pioneer Bridle Trail passes through the campground. A replica of the Barlow Trail Tollgate is just east of the campground.
 Afternoon: Visit the Philip Foster Farm. Philip Foster, one of Oregon's earliest pioneers, was a leader in the establishment of Oregon. His farm and home in Eagle Creek played an important part in the history of the Barlow Road, which followed the south side of Mt. Hood as an alternative to the treacherous Columbia River route. Either option held great danger: navigate the river's swift currents and rapids, or risk the steep slopes and early winter snows in the mountains. Foster helped fund, build and operate the Barlow Road at various times between 1848 and 1865, guiding thousands of covered wagons into the Willamette Valley. Foster took a 640 acre donation land claim at Eagle Creek in the late 1840's. The Philip Foster place was a welcome sight for pioneers coming down that one last hill into the Willamette Valley and the start of a new life in the new land. Today Philip and Mary Foster's Farm still plays host to thousands. From April through October schoolchildren engage in activities that were part of the daily life of Oregon's earliest settlers. Move up to North Ridge tented camp on the Tilikum property for the night.
 Dinner: Help prepare your dinner over a campfire at your camp site.
 Evening: Campfire and Pioneer Storytelling. Then sleep overnight in a tent as the early explorers and pioneers did.
   
Accommodations: Tilikum Center for Retreats
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 6: Breaking camp and departures
(Friday, July 12)

Note: As you say good-bye to your new friends, we trust your interest in history and the settlement of our nation will have only begun.
   
 Breakfast: Final breakfast at the tent camp.
 Morning: Return to the Retreat Center for final class session, packing and wrap-up.
 Lunch: Lunch available onsite or as "to-go" option for travellers who must leave promptly. Final departure by 12pm.
   
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Free Time Opportunities
  
  Hood River, OR Hood River
Chamber of Commerce and general information For additional information, visit www.hoodriver.org
  Newberg, OR Newberg Chamber of Commerce
Chamber of Commerce information For additional information, visit www.newberg.org
Important information about your itinerary: Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information featured on this website. Itineraries are based on our best information at this time. Circumstances beyond our control may require us to adjust itineraries or other details. We regret any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding. Information will be sent to you from your Program Provider approximately three weeks prior to the program start date. The prices listed for commercial services and facilities that are not included in the program cost, such as airport shuttles or extra nights lodging, are subject to change without notice. Since Road Scholar cannot guarantee the accuracy of these prices, we strongly suggest contacting the companies directly for the most up-to-date information.

Suggested Reading List


The Well Traveled Casket, Oregon Folklore


Author: Tom Nash and Twilo Scofield


Lewis and Clark - Pioneering Naturalists


Author: Paul Russell Cutright


The Lewis and Clark Journals, An American Epic of Discovery


Author: Meriweather Lewis and William Clark, edited by Gary Moultin


Oregon 1859, A Snapshot in Time


Author: Janice Marschner


The Letters of Narcissa Whitman 1836-1847


Author: Narcissa Whitman


All Together In One Place


Author: Jane Kirkpatrick


Description: First of four in the Kinship and Courage series about early settlers in the Northwest





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