Washington County, Ore., has a storied history, with eerie tales from pioneer days of the area’s earliest settlers. The most bone-chilling stories, however, are about ghostly spirits from more recent times.
The Haunting of Knight Hall
Pacific University’s Knight Hall (which is now the admissions building), reportedly is haunted by a young woman named Vera. As the legend goes, Vera, who was a music student at the university, died in Knight Hall. There are various stories about this eternal student and how her spirit came to inhabit the university, including one tale that she took her own life over an ill-fated love affair.
What is known about Vera is that for several decades there have been many sightings of her. She has been heard singing and playing piano and voicing her displeasure at some students’ performances by audibly sighing or telling the budding pianists to “please stop.”
Each Halloween, Pacific University students hold an event, “A Night in Knight Hall,” where students spend the night in the building and attempt to communicate with Vera’s ghost.
Haunted Hotel
McMenamins Grand Lodge is a stately European-style hotel with a storied past. Built in 1922 as the Masonic & Eastern Star Home, the property originally served as a rest home for Master Masons, their widows and orphans. It has since become synonymous with many strange happenings, aided in part by the colorful décor of the walls of this hotel, which are adorned with Masonic imagery and symbols and historical photographs, giving the hotel a uniquely eerie feel.
Various locations throughout the property have been witness to alleged paranormal and unexplained activities. Perhaps the best-known spirit at the Grand Lodge is the “Lavender Lady,” whose presence is known not just by the guest room named in her honor, or by her likeness painted on a wall mural. When the “Lavender Lady” is around, an unmistakably, strong scent of lavender permeates the hallway.
Stories of the Grand Lodge’s haunting have flourished for years and have become folklore for ghost hunters . The hotel’s guests and staffers have shared their tales and sightings in the “ghost log,” which is kept at the front desk to record the strange happenings at the property.
The Phantom of the Theatre
The Venetian Theatre and Bistro, a movie and live performance theatre, bistro and wine bar, has been a site for recent paranormal activity. The history of the building, located in downtown Hillsboro, is unknown, and the disturbances within it — unexplained water leaks, lights and music magically being turned on, apparitions and more — spooked enough people to warrant bringing in professional ghost hunters.
This summer, a team of paranormal investigators were called in to check out the otherworldly happenings in the building. During the investigation, one especially chilling event happened in the projection room of the theatre. The lead investigator asked the spirit in the only climate-controlled room in the building, to change the temperature. The spirit obliged, and raised the temperature from 70 degrees up to 78 degrees, then down to 68 degrees, the preferred temperature for the room.
So intriguing was the story of the haunted theatre, the Hillsboro Argus ran an article in August detailing these paranormal events.
Long after Halloween is over, these spooky spirits remain, with sightings year-round. So grab your gear and check it out for yourself. The next time you smell lavender, it just may be the Lavender Lady welcoming you to Washington County.
This fall, as the leaves are turning, the grapes are gathered and farmers’ fields yield to the harvest, it’s time to discover Oregon Bounty. Come meet vintners, chefs, and farmers; travel down roads you’ve never driven; sample what these artisans make, grow and catch; and spend a night or two so you can discover more. There are myriad ways to get a taste of Oregon Bounty in Washington County:
VISIT A WINERY
Tour Washington County wineries— more than 20 in all—many of which are conveniently located along the Vineyard and Valley Scenic Tour Route. Follow the signs on this driving journey that winds through quaint towns in the county known for their ideal grape growing conditions and outstanding finished products: wines!
SEE WHAT CHEFS DO
Taste the autumn bounty that’s abundant in Pacific Northwest flavor palates. Visit our site for details about the restaurants in the county that specialize in regional cuisine.
BE TOUCHED BY SPRITS SakéOne, the world’s only American-owned saké brewery, produces Momokawa brand premium saké and Moonstone brand fruit-infused saké. These high quality Ginjo sakés are intended to be enjoyed cold on their own and with your favorite foods. Sakétini Saturday happens on the third Saturday of each month; the tasting room is open daily from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
October 10:Great Onion Festival, Sherwood. This classic community event pays homage to the onion farmers of Sherwood, with a barbecue and assorted activities. Visit sherwoodchamber.org.
October 10:Oregon Heritage Farms hosts its annual Apple Fest. Enjoy the harvest of apple season with this festival–complete with country music, face painting, pony rides and hay rides. Plus, all proceeds benefit local students.
October 18:Heirloom Apple Festival, Hillsboro. Sample more than 20 varieties of heirloom and modern apples and pears fresh from the orchard. Enjoy freshly dipped caramel apples, hot apple cider and homemade apple pie made from an assortment of different apple varieties, all while enjoying live music. Kids’ activities will include a straw maze, face painting, petting goats and pumpkin gathering. Visit www.smithberrybarn.com.
October 31:West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta, Tualatin. Come cheer on 1,000 lb. pumpkin boats as people paddle across the lake at Tualatin Commons in races that are often wet and always entertaining. Visit ci.tualatin.or.us.
For a comprehensive culinary planning resource, visit TravelOregon.com/bounty, where you’ll find all that there is to see, do and taste. Oregon Bounty is produced by the Oregon Tourism Commission, dba Travel Oregon, in partnership with Oregon’s many destination marketing organizations and industry guilds. Discover Oregon’s Bounty with special fly/stay/drive packages from Horizon Air.
Saturday, Sept. 12: A demonstration of “Artisan Cheese of the Pacific Northwest: A Discovery Guide” by Tami Parr. Parr’s Pacific Northwest Cheese Project blog has become the preeminent source for local cheese news, producer profiles, and cheese reviews. Her guide, Artisan Cheese of the Pacific Northwest, was released this spring, and she will be signing copies.
Saturday, Sept. 19: The 52nd Annual Beaverton Celebration parade kicks off at 10 a.m. and can be viewed from the west end of the market.
Saturday, Sept. 26: The market transforms for “Medieval Market Day.” Enjoy medieval activities, games and demonstrations.
Saturday, Oct. 3: A demonstration of “Deep, Dark Chocolate” by Sara Perry, a food columnist for The Oregonian and author of 12 cookbooks, including the latest about chocolate–what she calls “one of the most important food groups.”
I fell in love at the annual Concours d’Elegance , which was held last Sunday on the Pacific University campus in Forest Grove. The objects of my affection were the beautifully restored cars representing the many eras of automobile history, from the refined elegance and timeless classic cars from the 1930s and fun convertibles from the 1950s to the cool sophistication of sports cars from the 1960s and beyond.
And, yes, there were the “muscle” cars, much to the delight of the thousands who gathered to see the hundreds of classic cars on display. I laughed when I caught a glimpse of the 70s- and 80s-era cars, such as the Chevy Camaro, and Trans-Am, both of which bring to mind the long hair, mullets and denim cut-off shorts of yesteryear. If only the Concours had an AMC Pacer or Gremlin, then my trip to the memory lane would have been complete.
But the Concours is all about elegance, and my favorite car at the show was the BMW Isetta, a mini-car reminiscent of stylish 1950s Europe. This nifty little car, which looks like a big bubble, reminded me of a toy car, complete with seating for two very small people, the only door being the front of the “bubble,” and an escape hatch, er, I mean sunroof on top. A passerby commented that he once saw a Sophia Loren flick with her exiting an Isetta. If it is classy enough for Sophia Loren, then, certainly, it must have been a pretty cool car back in the day.
My daughter and I had a ball at the “exotic used car lot,” where dozens of classic cars were on sale to interested buyers. As expected, there were plenty of 60s-era Ford Mustangs, Mercedes from the 1980s (in the requisite muddy brown color that was ever so popular at the time) and even a muscle car or two; however, two cars caught our eyes, attention and laughter: an AMC Delorean (best known as the time-traveling car in the film “Back to the Future”) and a 1950-something Ford pick-up truck my daughter and I lovingly called the “Sanford and Son” truck.
Before we left, we couldn’t help but notice a BMW Isetta on the used car lot. The owner was asking $15,000 for this once-pristine vehicle, which, to my surprise, gets 60-80 miles per gallon. For a brief moment, I imagined myself, a la Sophia Loren, glamorously driving around Washington County in an Isetta. Then I came back to my senses and hopped into my own version of Euro-coolness: my Volkswagon Rabbit.
Each spring, SakéOne, located in Forest Grove, Ore., holds a Shinto ritual, or blessing of the kura (brewery). Shinto is a spiritual ceremony, steeped in Japanese tradition, described as a purification rite that celebrates health, prosperity, life and the creative forces of nature.
Saké is an important element in traditional Shinto rituals, and each sakéry has an association with a Shinto shrine. The ceremony at SakéOne was presided by Rev. Koichi Barrish from the traditional Jinja Shinto Shrine, Tsubaki Grand Shrine, located in Granite Falls, Washington.
This year, I was fortunate enough to attend this annual event with writer (and fellow former Las Vegan) Ivy Hover, the Portland-based beverage writer for examiner.com. The ceremony, which included a traditional ritual in Japanese, and a blessing of the four directions – north, south, east, west – of the kura, left me feeling rejuvenated and, well, purified.
After the kura was blessed, the standing-room-only crowd of 200 onlookers toasted in celebration with a saké crafted specifically for the Tsubaki Grand Shrine.
While others were noshing on the delicious spread, Ivy and I went into the tasting room, which was bustling with others who shared in the ritual, to introduce her to SakéOne’s varied selections of premium, organic and herb- and fruit-infused saké. (Read Ivy’s candid review of her tasting experience.)
I eschewed the saké tastings, opting, instead, to try the three sakétinis on the menu for the day (which also happened to be “Saketini Saturday,” which is held at the sakery the third Saturday of each month). Although the names of the drinks escape me, I do remember that were delish, and tasted like liquid candy.
After a couple of hours of saké-inspired spirituality, I had an insatiable craving for sushi. On my way home, I stopped at one of the top sushi spots in the Portland area, Syun Izakaya, located in Hillsboro. Luckily, the lunch crowd was thinning out, and I was able to score a seat at the sushi bar.
I ordered my usual: eel roll (with salmon) and a spicy tuna roll with hot, green tea to wash it down. With saké still on the brain, I perused Syun’s drink menu, which has one of the most impressive saké lists I’ve ever seen. And, in case you are wondering, yes, Syun does carry a selection of saké from SakéOne (under its various labels).
What a fantastic experience it was for a spring day in Washington County: saké, sushi and sunshine!
If you’ve read my little bio, you may recall that my wife and I like to take off on what we call our “Mystery Trips.” Just heading out in the car and seeing where we end up. One such trip found us in some podunk burg in Washington state with nothing to offer but video poker and a local play, touted on flyers posted all over town. But we figured, why not?
Well, we ended up seeing a rousing rendition of Guys and Dolls that must have included every last guy and doll for 50 miles. Was it Broadway? No. Not even off-off Broadway. But was it great fun and very entertaining? Definitely.
Unlike that mom and pop operation, Washington County boasts a first-rate community theater company, and only mere minutes from Portland. The Theater in the Grove (in Forest Grove, naturally) is the longest running community theater company west of the Mississippi. And consistently wins rave reviews for their top-notch productions.
On the boards through March 15: Tom Stoppard’s “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead.”
Many of Washington County’s wineries host special events on holiday weekends, and this year’s Valentine’s Day was no exception. I headed out with my friend/co-worker Cherie, her hubby Darrell, their twin boys and our friend Ming for a day of fun on the west side of the county. We’d been anxious to test out the wines at the newly-opened Plum Hill Vineyards, and we were very impressed! Juanita and RJ Lint, the owners, had a full flight of six of their own wines and two additional pours from their friends at Thistle Wines in Dundee. They also had a full spread of very yummy food (spicy blue cheese “cake” anyone?), and they invited the folks from L-Bar-T Bison Ranch to offer samples of their pepperoni, summer sausage and jerky. The tasting room is so homey and comfortable that we could have stayed all day, but alas, other wineries were calling our names!
Our next stop was Montinore Estate, always a favorite of mine. A tasting there consists of any five wines from their extensive list, and we all had our own opinions on the perfect combination. My favorite is their Ruby, a Pinot Noir port that makes me want to curl up in front of a crackling fire. Lovely.
Another quick drive led us to SakéOne, where we enjoyed their “For the Love of Nigori” exotic chocolate and saké pairings. My favorite saké (as usual) was the Coconut Lemongrass, and we all LOVED the Domori Latte Sal chocolate from Italy. The Japanese atmosphere must have inspired Cherie, because in the middle of our tasting she suggested we make our next stop dinner at Syun Izakaya in Hillsboro. It sounded like a great idea, so off we went. We ordered a ton of sushi, hand rolls, sashimi and tempura, and we managed to eat most of it! It was a perfect way to wrap up a lovely day with friends.
Washington County, Ore., has a storied history, with eerie tales from pioneer days of the area’s earliest settlers. The most bone-chilling stories, however, are about ghostly spirits from more recent times.
McMenamins Grand Lodge is a stately European-style hotel with a storied past. Built in 1922 as the Masonic & Eastern Star Home, the property originally served as a rest home for Master Masons, their widows and orphans. It has since become synonymous with many strange happenings, aided in part by the colorful décor of the walls of this hotel, which are adorned with Masonic imagery and symbols and historical photographs, giving the hotel a uniquely eerie feel.
October 31: 
