This is the (often literally) beating heart of Mount Angel's seasonal festivities: a massive,…read moreBavarian-style community center, within which the largest, rowdiest and most festive events can be found! With its high ceilings and spacious interior, it's a safe gathering place, even amidst the Covid crisis (although masks and social distancing are still recommended, as much as possible, especially around drunk people). Here, you frequently find live music (polka!), beers, ciders and other beverages on tap, a modest if unspectacular grill (Pro Tip #1: eat elsewhere during festive events), and actual restrooms (Pro Tip #2: forget the Honey Buckets; use these)! Oktoberfest, Volksfest, Wurstfest are all worth attending for the fun and frivolity, and I'm sure there are several other local events that make use of this colossal community space, during the "off-season". Despite the booze and brews, this venue is for all ages, up to a certain point in the night, when the parties start to become a bit...unhinged. Best to preserve your dignity and make sure the kiddos are tucked into bed before you really tie one on. Great gathering place, filled with wonderful memories and a spirit of community and brotherhood, even if most of us are drunken imports.

Great addition to the Mt. Angel venues for Oktoberfest and community use year round. It opened just…read morein time for Oktoberfest in 2011 and served as a biergarten. We visited later in the Winter for Wurstfest. This indoor community center has the benefit of modern construction and amenities with charming Bavarian scenes above the stage and throughout the building. Really nice multi-use facility for the community.

The rose garden is in terrible condition. It seems no one is…read moretending these very beautiful and old roses. Has so much potential. At least have a horticultural club tend it.

Tucked behind the Oregon State Capitol is a beautiful botanical garden full of lush, fragrant…read moreblooms in a rainbow of colors. How apropos for the month of Pride! The setting was perfect for capturing a few sweet family photos. We wound through the garden showing our appreciation for the varied colors and sizes of roses. There are several arches and benches that lend to photo ops in addition to the Gold Man standing atop the Capitol building overlooking us. We brought our Pendleton picnic blanket and perched under the giant tree to enjoy one another's company and a snack over a game of gin rummy. This little spot is a special hideaway and perfect stop on a beautiful day.

My husband & I had to stop in here this past July when we just could not find the covered bridge we…read morewere looking for. The lady that was here was so beyond friendly and helpful. She gave us directions to where we needed to go and gave us lots of information on where to eat and other places to stop on the way to our destination. Thank you so much for your courtesy!

This museum appears small but has so much inside! Staff working were friendly and willing to…read moreAnswer questions and tell you more about the displays They have some neat stuff, I don't know much about Silverton but learned more and got to see some cool items. Did you know there was a Silverton Red Sox?

This museum is obviously a labor of love for the people who work here…read more I was surprised by the size and variety of the exhibits. I especially enjoyed the exhibits highlighting the communities of Polk County, large and small, even the ones now ghost towns. I learned a lot from my visit here; for example, Camp Adair, a World War II military installation once located nearby, was once the second largest community in the state of Oregon and served as a detention center for Italian and German POWs. Many of the personal items displayed, especially upstairs, were poignant reminders of the passage of time. Also, the agricultural history displays were more interesting than they might sound, and I learned that Dallas, Oregon once carried the nickname of "Prune City." It looked like they had some local history books for sale, as well as some miscellaneous cookbooks and other books that didn't seem to have a local focus. Admission was five dollars, and at the time I visited, their credit card reader was not working, so cash was required. The restaurant next door has an atm that comes in handy if, like me, you don't have any cash with you. If you are at all curious about the history of the area, I definitely recommend this well-rounded museum!

If you're in the area this has to be on your to-do list. Plan to spend AT LEAST an hour there. This…read morearea has lots of history and you will want to have time to read some stories. All the staff there are very passionate about what they do. The gift shop also has some unique items. Don't just drive by!

Decent Beer Festival, good representation of the local Salem breweries, the rest are from either…read moreColumbia Distributing, Venti's, and B2 Tap Rooms. (Miller and Miller Lite are on the list, what self-respecting beer fest serves those? Yea, nix the macros) So, largely widely distributed breweries with a few smaller ones thrown in. If you are someone like me who goes to a lot of tastings there won't bee too many that you haven't had yet, but I did find one or 2 new ones. My suggestion would be to limit the selection to individual breweries from Oregon, and not limit it to ones with a distribution agreement, would increase the variety and keep it much more local small craft artisan oriented. As is, I will still go every year to support it, but could definitely be improved.

The Mount Angel Volksfest is like the kleine bruder of the town's significantly more expansive…read moreOktoberfest: a quick winter fix to hold us over on beer and sausages until autumn rolls around again. Contained entirely within the village's massive Festhalle, you'll find a handful of local vendors purveying local products, including wines, clothing, hats, foodstuffs and souvenirs. Left of the entrance, you'll find der kindercorner, where volunteers offer (free!) balloon animals and face painting for the littles, who have no idea why all the grown-ups are singing, dancing, and drinking all day long. Beers, wine and cider are available from multiple vendors right of the entrance, many of them local, including a Benedictine brew crafted by the monks of Mount Angel Abbey, just outside the town proper. Music and entertainment is provided by various local, semi-local, and internationally renowned polka bands; if you've attended even one Oktoberfest in your life, you've know what you're in for, and you've likely heard all of the songs before, likely multiple times per visit. For some, the repetition gets old; I like to call it "tradition", and just roll with it. After a few beers, your appreciation for these threadbare tunes will increase, I assure you. Zigga zagga, zigga zagga, oi Oi OI! Ein prosit! It may not be the real McCoy, but it's not meant to be: the Mount Angel Volksfest is a tiny morsel meant to whet the appetite for the glorious revels to come later in the year. For a town that prides itself on its heritage like Mount Angel, the locals rarely need a reason to break out the beer and sausages. September cannot come soon enough! But until then, strap on some lederhosen, dust off that dirndl, chow down on some of the best wurst around, and raise a glass with a cheer and a smile! Winter (and COVID?) is almost over! That's more than enough reason to celebrate! Prost! Admission is $10 for adult attendees, free for under 21s. Tokens for beverages are $1/each, with beers, ciders and wines running between 6-8 tokens. Food must be purchased separately with cash or card, and an ATM is available just inside the doors, and includes an array of sausages, pretzels, potato salad, sauerkraut, and many other Oktoberfest staples, although there didn't appear to be any schnitzel, which ought to be illegal!

Neither the best fest, nor the worst fest. It is somewhere in between…read more The 4th annual Wurstfest was held February 17 - 18 and would be a nice introduction to Mt. Angel, but certainly not a substitute for attending Oktoberfest in September. It is really a way to attract visitors to this small hamlet in the Willamette Valley during the off season. The most fascinating part for me is that it is billed as a "Mt. Angel Celebration of German Sausage," and yet my favorite sausage place in town, Mt. Angel Sausage Co., was not a vendor. I am sure there is an interesting back story there... The festival was held in the new Mt. Angel Community Center, Festhalle. Since everything was in one spot, it was easy to find the festival on Highway 214 and free parking was a snap. This is very different from Oktoberfest which pretty much takes over the entire town and has dozens of venues. Admission was $10 for adults and children were free. When you entered, you were able to select a nice wine glass, beer glass or stein as a souvenir. The vendors were an interesting mix of local businesses and smaller residential vendors that traveled to the event. My favorites were the Urban German, St. Josef's Winery and the mustard sold by the sisters from the neighboring Benedictine Monastery. But compared to the spectacle of Oktoberfest, this was an elegant, modest affair. Lots of folks dressed up in their German finery and you could purchase your own lederhosen, dirndls and hats. It was a happy festival, filled with music and a few dancers, but having been a visitor to Oktoberfest, it struck me as a pleasant footnote. Certainly not a main attraction.

Independence is a fun little city with a college-town feel. Western Oregon University is nearby so…read morethere are always college students around. Central High School is also located here. One of the funnest things about Independence is the 4th if July celebration! The day starts out with a fun run and a big parade, then people meander down to the riverfront to enjoy the music, food and booths. Then, when it's dark, they have a fantastic fireworks display!

Today is the biggest day of the year for the city of Independence. Of course the name should give…read morethat away. We come here almost every year for the parade and all the festivities. The parade is always fun. They have a small, I think 5k run at the beginning of the parade. Some times they have a fly over by the military. The rest of the day, they have rides, booths and lots of food down by the river front. At night, they have one of the biggest firework shows. If you haven't been, you should come and check it out. It's great fun. Our family loves it.

I love the art fair! lots and lots of choices. I haven't purchased any for myself because it's too…read moreexpensive, though. 600... 700 1500 for a pretty painting, well I just can't afford that. The food was absolute crap, I must say. ugh terrible. I had a burrito that was awwweeeefffuuuullll. yuck. and the choices for food was greasy on top of greasy. Oregon is known for it's food trucks, couldn't the art fair get some to come on down from Portland?! Anyway, I love the art fair because it's huge and I get to look at all sorts of nice art... next year though, I'm gonna eat first and go after 2pm on Sunday when it's free. :)

The Salem Art Fair has been a staple a Salem summers for years. The art is impressive and moving…read morethe stage out from under the oak trees was a good decision. However, I wish the booths for individual artists were still under the shade of the trees and the food options are disappointing. The addition of Gilgamesh Brewing is promising, but I think bringing in food trucks, or some new vendors, could provide better options.