The family and I might be headed up that way this weekend.

The Rogue River Gorge?  The easiest way is the pay for the Jet-boat tour from downtown Grants Pass. If you want something more strenuous/adventurous then hike the Rainie Falls Trail:


Directions to Trailhead

If you want to be with every other Portlander, that's a great option

If it were me, I'd head up to the Rowena Loops and if the family is up for the heat maybe walk the Rowena Crest Trail(all of 2 miles if you do the entire loop). Gorgeous views.

Driving up the Klickitat out of Lyle is awesome too. The drive up Dalles Mountain to Centerville Highway out of the Columbia Hills State Park is beautiful as well.

On the Washington side if you want a hike that's not too long with great views, Wind Mountain is a great alternative to Dog this time of year. Not quite as good of a view east as Dog, but still nice and not many people usually.

If you want to check out something cool that's not on the beaten path and are up for a drive, head out to White River Falls State Park south of the Dalles. It's about a 2 hour drive from PDX, but the hike down to the river is short(1/4 mile) and there is an old hydro powerhouse down there that is still full equipped, just falling apart, that's cool to look at. Beach is nice too. Water isn't safe to swim in though, lots of drownings there.