Free (or almost) Field Trip Opportunities

Free day at OSU's Kelley Engineering Center: See senior design projects, watch TekBot Triathlon, tour the wave research lab and more.

Free and open to the public on Friday, May 14th, 2010, 11 AM - 4 PM. For more info call 541-737-3101 engr.oregonstate.edu/expo2010

35 Free and Cheap Things to Do With Kids in Portland

Portland — By Lora on May 11, 2010 at 12:10

What’s kid-friendly, free and fun in Portland, Oregon? Here’s a warm-weather list to get you started. What would you add?

1. Play in Salmon Springs Fountain’s 137 jets at Tom McCall Waterfront Park.
2. Enjoy a $3 family movie at McMenamin’s Kennedy School.
3. Watch ice skaters twirl at the Lloyd Center Ice Rink.
4. Enjoy one of Portland’s kid-friendly museums on a free or cheap day.
5. Try on glasses made from forks in Spoonman’s booth at Portland Saturday Market.
6. Go for a bird-watching hike on Sauvie Island.
7. Look for leprechauns in the tiniest park in America — Mill Ends Park.
8. Enjoy the Preschool Skate and Play at Oaks Amusement Park.
9. Get your thrills from the Portland Aerial Tram.
10. Ride the vintage 1921 carousel at the Jantzen Beach SuperCenter.
11. Seek Simpsons references in Portland’s Alphabet District (including Reverend Lovejoy, Mayor Quimby and Ned Flanders).
12. Stop and smell Barbara Streisand at the International Rose Test Gardens. You won’t even get slapped with a restraining order; the rose is named after the singer.
13. Listen to family tunes at Portland Farmers Market.
14. Sit in the Jamison Square waterfall and disappearing pool.
15. Find Ramona Quimby at Grant Park.
16. Ride the MAX to the Washington Park stop, the deepest train station in North America.
17. Play on an (extinct) volcano at Mt. Tabor Park.
18. Drink from a Benson Bubbler.
19. Speak out against early bedtimes from Pioneer Courthouse Square’s Echo Chamber.
20. Browse the picture books at Powell’s City of Books.
21. Make art from SCRAP’s scraps.
22. Head to a Portland Park — for movies or a concert.
23. Get inches away from salmon and horror-movie eels at Bonneville Dam.
24. Cool off with 620 feet of water at the second-largest waterfall in the U.S. – Multnomah Falls.
25. Discuss American history at Kidd’s Toy Museum, where vintage toys reflect the values of their day.
26. Try a Spanish, Mandarin or ASL storytime at Green Bean Books.
27. Cycle along one of Portland’s kid-friendly bike paths.
28. Let your mouth travel ’round the world — sample dishes from Portland’s food carts.
29. Bop along to a family-friendly music show at Milagros Boutique.
30. Play Ms. Pac-Man, Pole Position and other retro games at Ground Kontrol with a pocketful of quarters.
31. Ride the Portland Streetcar.
32. Listen to a summer lunch concert at Noon Tunes at Pioneer Courthouse Square.
33. Get your fortune told at the wacky 24-Hour Church of Elvis.
34. Party pretty at the Portland Rose Festival.
35. Enjoy a cup of drinking chocolate at Cacao. Buzzing with caffeine, repeat 1-34.

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