<p>We were coming from Northern California but our itinerary looked like this: we arrived in Salem, toured WU the next day, spent another night then got up bright and early for Linfield. Drove to McMinnville, did the LC thing and then drove that same day to Portland. We found our hotel, went to WA to Joes Crab Shack for dinner (just over the bridge and on the river) then it was a tour of UP the next day. After our time at UP we went into Portland and visited Powells. The following day we went to Pacific then left from there and headed So.</p>
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<p>In my experience, there is no really quick way to get from Forest Grove to Salem; getting to I-5 from Forest Grove can take an hour, or much more in bad traffic, plus the 50 minutes on I-5 to get down to Salem. The scenic route down Highway 47 to 99W is quite rural. It is a shorter distance and very little traffic except for the several miles of strip malls on 99W going through McMinnville. After McMinnville, there is close to zero traffic all the way down to Salem. I would still allow 1.5 hours for the drive. I would recommend this route because you can almost guarantee the driving time.</p>
<p>If you take the scenic route, while travelling on Highway 47 you will pass through the the little towns of Gaston, Yamhill and Carlton. Be careful, for they all have lowered speed limits (20-30 mph) with school zones and speed traps. The same is true for Amity, on 99W south of McMinnville.These towns also take pedestrian right of way in crosswalks very seriously, (as does McMinnville, especially on the main shopping street, Third St.)</p>
<p>ciervo–Thanks so much for the gem of info about highways, driving time and watching speed limits…very helpful and appreciated! </p>
<p>We’d rather take the ‘rural’ route anyway, just not if there’s a major time difference- so good to know we can go ahead and enjoy the scenery–sometimes at a slow pace 
thru the towns.</p>
<p>I second the rural route. It gives you a better feel for the area and is much less stressful. You may not want to do interviews on this trip. That would make your schedule more “locked in” and you might want more flexibility in timing.</p>
<p>as a bonus the rural route takes you through wine country :)</p>
<p>My daughter recently attended an alumna tour of a Portland craft distillery.
[I really want to try the Douglas Fir eau de vie](<a href=“Clear Creek Distillery — Hood River Distillers”>Clear Creek Distillery — Hood River Distillers)</p>
<p>Rural route to Forest Grove from Portland, definitely. It’s faster than I-5. (I drive around in the Portland/Corvallis/Salem/Forest Grove/etc area a lot (it’s also called “wine country”).)</p>
<p>Keep in mind Powell’s is open VERY late (9AM to 11PM), so you can do that AFTER you’ve done all the colleges. Hotels in downtown Portland are not that much more expensive than out in the suburbs (the Nines seems to run some kind of $99 deal all the time if you ask for it) and you’d be able to walk around downtown at the end of the day. And Portland traffic is nowhere near as bad as Seattle’s, even at full-on rush hour.</p>
<p>Thanks to all of you. The rural route it is!</p>
<p>…historymom–you are full of ‘dangerous’ tips–donuts, bakeries IN bookstores and wine:)</p>
<p>dmd77–glad to hear that Portland traffic is surviveable as there is a possibility of having to drive thru there in the evening on the way home.</p>
<p>In some ways it’s not good Powell’s is open so late–D1 will need reminding the 2 nights we’re in Portland that it is a COLLEGE tour NOT bookstore sleepover! What’s somewhat funny about this is the kid WORKS in a bookstore but you still can’t get her out of them…however Powell’s is a different ‘breed’ even I have to admit.
It’s good we’re overnighting Salem and McMinnville last 2 nights!</p>
<p>collegemaw: Dangerous tips? I like that 
But, I learned the hard way that the key to a successful college road trip is that everyone gets a little of what they want. I also allowed mine to opt out of any or all activities and hang in the college coffee shop. She never took me up on it but knowing she had the choice made her much more compliant.</p>
<p>Ooh GOOD tip right there hmom! She can take a couple books and ‘hang’ in the college coffee places to soak up the vibe and ppl watch and take a break from the rush-rush tours etc.</p>
<p>Collegemaw: Here is a thread from the trip my D and I took to the PNW last July. She really liked Linfield and Willamette. </p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/741968-pacific-northwest-college-road-trip.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/741968-pacific-northwest-college-road-trip.html</a></p>
<p>When in McMinnville, check out the Red Fox Bakery, and Geraldi’s Italian Eating Place (talk about a place to carb up on a budget!).</p>
<p>The Pacific Northwest has a lot of great colleges and universities, most of whom seem to be quite generous with their financial/merit aid. Something near and dear to my heart!</p>
<p>kumitedad,
I bookmarked your trip thread quite a while ago…it was very helpful! Do you think your daughter might end up in the Northwest?</p>
<p>It looks like Christian schools are included on your list, so you may want to look at Whitworth in Spokane (not to be confused with Whitman). From the Web site, it’s Presbyterian, but not obnoxiously so. One of my best friends from college is an English professor there. It looks like they have some interesting programs.</p>
<p>OtherEtc…thank you.
D1 has recv’d info about Whitworth, Whitman and Gonzaga but so far she’s sticking with wanting to be on the West side of the Cascades.</p>
<p>Collegemaw: Actually were I a betting man, I would saw she would be going to Whitworth. She really like the atmosphere there. I would agree with OtherEtc, it looks like a lot of interesting programs there, and I believe there is some major additions to the sciences there as well</p>
<p>Whitworth is a gorgeous school, but double check on the the religious atmosphere, even if the faculty and administration play it down, unless that’s what you’re looking for. In the olden days a lot of the student body was fairly religiously judgmental - I only lasted there a year. It was a long time ago though, so things may have changed a lot since then.</p>
<p>Aren’t they Presbyterian?</p>
<p>Not really a judgmental denomination is it?</p>
<p>They did have Stephen Meyer teach philosophy ( big proponent of ID), but he was a * philosophy* prof, not thank the goddess, a biology prof.</p>
<p>kumitedad, it will be interesting to see if you are right! </p>
<p>I know Whitworth, Gonzaga and Whitman have very good reputations.</p>
<p>collegemaw, perhaps you could point out that there is more winter sun in places east of the mountains, and that the snow is fluffier for snowboarding. The fact that colleges there, and general living costs, are a bit lower doesn’t have to enter the discussion.
My D is sharing a house in WallaWalla with 4 other kids. Rent (including water and garbage) is $1000/month - for the whole house. You can’t do that in Portland. OTOH, there isn’t a Powel’s in WallaWalla, just a lot of wine shops she can’t shop in!</p>
<p>My younger D likes Mt Hood pretty well for snowboarding :)</p>