Portland day 2

Today Mary and Adrian took the kids to a museum not far from our accommodation, while Damien and I decided to spend the day doing more sightseeing and hiking.

We drove to the Audubon bird sanctuary. We took a couple of short walks along tracks in the surrounding forest and saw a pair of woodpeckers. The sanctuary rehabilitates native birds, including the largest raven we have ever seen and an American Kestrel, both of which are permanently held at the sanctuary because they are too injured to be released.

We then drove to Pittock Mansion which was built around 1914 and owned by one of the wealthy families in the region. The house is very beautiful and notable for its early adoption of many new technologies, including central heating, ducted vacuum and multi-jet showers. The house and grounds also afforded amazing views of Portland.

We headed back over the river to get some lunch. We found a butcher that specialises in cured, smoked and fresh pork. They have a small menu of sandwiches which showcases some of their produce. They were really delicious, so we bought a few slices of their ham to take back to the house with us. On our way to lunch, we drove past Voodoo Doughnuts, so we decided it would be crazy not to pay them another visit. We stopped in and bought doughnuts for everyone.

After so many nights out, Damien and I decided to cook dinner, so we made nachos which everyone seemed to enjoy. And of course we had doughnuts for dessert!