Portland Swimming Holes

Summer is right around the corner and if you want to make the most of it you have to grab the summer baton at full speed.  Make your lists, schedule your calendar and get in what you can.  To get you primed, below are my two favorite Swimming activities around Portland.

As someone who loves to swim in a city surrounded by nature, I find it frustrating that there is not a close-in swimming hole to cool off. My favorite closest spots are Portland’s public pools.  There are specific times of the day to lap swim, family swim and lots of special events.  Grab your Tankini,  hit a lounge chair, read, cool off and take in the chaos. If you have already experienced your neighborhood public pool, maybe venture out and check out a new pool. Our favorites are Grant, Sellwood and Wilson.

River Tubing Portland
Not necessarily for all ages, so you need to be safe, but tubing the river is a great way to spend an afternoon or even a whole day. My favorite spots are not wild, crazy, rides. They are slow, mellow floats. Once you get past the initial chill of the water, on a hot day you quickly forget your initial shock and sink right into your tube. My favorite floats are a mix of a spiritual retreat and Mardi Gras party. At times, a mellow affair, where you can fully relax, take in nature and enjoy the water-level perspective provided by your tube. Other times, people-watching your fellow tubers both on the shore and on the river banks trumps the beautiful surroundings. You can typically purchase an inner tube at a tire shop for the pure old school experience which runs about $15. But I recommend purchasing a new inner tube-shaped float, which costs $48 at Popina (consider it an investment). The advantage of new tubes is that they are designed for quick inflation and deflation and do not need to be blown up at a gas station.  My favorite rivers to tube are the Sandy River and the Clackamas River.  It is a good idea to go with two cars so you can shuttle back and forth from the put-in.