Around Portland Tours: Portland's reputation is one of the United States' best bike cities. Photo / Intrepid Travel, Supplied
Around Portland Tours: Portland's reputation is one of the United States' best bike cities. Photo / Intrepid Travel, Supplied
Brett Atkinson explores Portland's food truck scene on two wheels and four paws
According to biking guide Edwin Skaug, Bear's "favourite colour is pink", and on a cool Portland morning, it's soon obvious the shaggy, long-haired labrador is also partial to Pacific Northwest rain and the occasional hipster treat. Sporting a bright red bandana, Portland's most easygoing canine tour guide trots dutifully beside Edwin's bike, shaking off spring showers during a two-wheeled discovery of the city, before devouring the well-earned reward of a dog biscuit smeared with Fifty Licks' award-winning matcha and mochi icecream.
Fifty Licks: Bear has a taste for matcha and mochi ice-cream. Photo / Intrepid Travel, Supplied
Bear's not the only one enjoying Portland's great food scene. "Don't have much for breakfast" I'd been warned, and across five hours and 12km of easy cycling, it turns out to be brilliant advice. Highlighted by treats from the best of the city's Eastside food carts, the day's experience with Around Portland Tours is also a super-relaxed way to get to know my co-travellers before kicking off an Intrepid Travel road trip south to San Francisco.
Completing Around Portland Tours' trio of cycling guides is Sarah Gilbert, Portland born and bred and, according to her business card, a multi-tasking whiz who's also a "forest witch, professional rose smeller and sidewalk poetry critic". She's also the ideal person for insights into Portland's social and political situation, and on my third trip to the city, I'm soon learning far more than on previous visits.
Around Portland Tours is a super-relaxed way to get to know your co-travellers and Portland's best eats. Photo / Intrepid Travel, Supplied
First up on the morning's two-wheeled itinerary is a stop at Upper Left Roasters' corner spot in East Portland's Ladd's Addition neighbourhood. Later in the day, visiting nearby craft breweries and distilleries would be an option, but it's only 11am so I fuel up instead with a cold-brew coffee blended with citrus and piloncillo, a raw cane sugar sourced from Mexico.
Upper Left's cool vibe soon morphs to one of Portland's most leafy suburbs, with Sarah's olfactory skills given a workout amid the spring blooms of the Ladd Circle Rose Gardens, the elegant central hub of Portland's oldest planned residential development. Observing heritage villas framed by towering conifers, a few of the morning's cycling crew wistfully reckon "You know, I could really live here".
Dedicated cycleways and a series of convenient back-street shortcuts transport our group northeast to the raffish neighbourhood of Belmont. Leading the way through waves of soft Portland rain are Edwin and Bear, both getting away slightly earlier to ensure the next menu item is ready and waiting for our group's arrival. Big and bold and painted bright yellow, Chubby Bunny's food cart serves up "breakfast sandwiches", and they're proud to reveal everything they serve is "secretly vegan". Enlivened with spicy sriracha aioli, an English muffin is crammed with egg, "sausage" and "bacon", and it's the kind of culinary sleight of hand that would hoodwink any dedicated carnivore. Even Bear seems a fan, lining up eagerly beside Edwin as he dishes out Chubby Bunny treats to our group of 10 riders.
As we continue on more cycle-only byways and are impressed by local drivers' uniformly careful attention in giving way to our group, Portland's reputation as one of the United States' best bike cities is reinforced as we head back south across SE Hawthorne Boulevard. Come back at night and the bustling strip features some of Portland's best cafes and restaurants, but on a wet and cool Sunday afternoon, it's a route signposted by colourful wall-covering street art and ad hoc, al fresco displays of social commentary. The message on a red Stop sign has been enhanced with the scrawled addition of "Racism", while a bumper sticker for Democrats Joe Biden and Kamala Harris subtly makes its case with "Make the rich richer. Vote Republican". Even an intersection is an opportunity for a spot of Portland-style advocacy, and I look down to see someone has painted "Read More" on the road. In a destination with the world's biggest independent book store – Powell's City of Books covers more than 6000sq m in Portland's Pearl District – it sounds like damn good advice.
Hinterland is a recently opened collection of some of Portland's best food carts. Photo / Intrepid Travel, Supplied
Just before our next food cart stop, we detour for a short time to the PDX Free Fridge, one of an informal network of publicly-stocked fridges and outdoor pantries throughout the city. Against a mural on the adjacent Bleeding Hearts Kettlebell Club – a gym known for its anarchist beliefs and community activism - it's an opportunity for Sarah to tell us about Portland's proudly bohemian and liberal spirit.
A craft beer pub on wheels. Photo / Intrepid Travel, Supplied
From BHKC it's a short ride to Hinterland, a recently opened collection of some of Portland's best food carts with the added attraction of a cocktail bar and craft beer pub. Draught brews from around Oregon are served on the spacious deck, and as we shelter from another impetuous shower, Edwin's off securing delivery from Matt's BBQ Tacos food cart. Sarah's certainly been talking them up, possibly using the phrase "Best in Portland" several times, and stuffed with tender brisket or pork belly they don't disappoint. Refreshed with a saison from Portland's Upright Brewing, it's time to ride to our final stop for the day's dessert. I eventually decide on Fifty Licks' mango and sticky rice flavour, but it's a close call with Oregon strawberry and fig and chevre also firmly in the mix.
They're all delicious. No wonder Bear's such a fan.
CHECKLIST: PORTLAND
An Eastside Food Carts tour with Around Portland Tours is included on Intrepid Travel's new six-day Portland to San Francisco Discovery itinerary. Departures are from mid-June to mid-September. Twin-share costs are from $3300pp. See intrepidtravel.com.
