Things to Do in Saint Helens

Elida Field’s sources of inspiration have ranged from regal horses to lush flowers to undulating Italian landscapes—which she revisits from time to time with fledgling art lovers in Italian art tours. Painted straight from the heart with a little help from the hands, her most recent works find her exploring the feminine form as she combines drawing and color with collages of photos and inspiring quotes. Her works have been showcased in Texas, Oregon, and Washington while on vacation from her studio, which doubles as a teaching space.

Pet lovers congregate inside the Portland Metropolitan Expo Center’s 72,000-square-foot expanse for the 11th annual Northwest Pet and Companion Expo, featuring a weekend's worth of pet-centric exhibitions and more than 120 vendors. Now entering its second decade, the locally owned event entertains kids with face painting, bounce houses, and demonstrations by pet experts, while adults enjoy live entertainment and informational resources about adoption opportunities. Pets can accompany their owners through the fair's walk-through aviary and exotic animal display, and a truffle-dog tournament lets canines test their sniffing abilities in discerning pinot noir from chardonnay.

The 20,000-square-foot facility showcases hands-on exhibits and simulators devoted to the importance of forests and their role in providing habitat, water, recreation, wood, and a number of other one-word wonders. With the family-plus membership, two adults and all children 18 and younger in the family are free to explore the museum's two floors for a year. The first floor focuses on the Pacific Northwest, entertaining visitors with interactive exhibits such as the Timberjack Harvester Simulator and River Raft Adventure, where visitors can take a simulated trip through class-IV rapids. On the second floor, guests can learn about forest art, history, and culture—hitching a jeep ride in South Africa, touring the Trans-Siberian railway, or swinging through the Amazon rainforest's canopy just like Tarzan did. A number of special exhibits are also available on a rotating basis.

Many traditional artists paint linen or sculpt stone. For an agri-artist such as Craig Easterly, though, a cornfield makes a perfectly good canvas. For more than a decade, Craig has been chiseling through the 12-foot stalks of his 5-acre field to create what is from the ground a maze of rustling green tunnels and from above a stunning tableau of Portland themes and images. "I like to create designs that resonate with Portlanders and our friends in the greater Portland area," he said in a 2011 press release. One year, his work cut the city's bridges and rivers into the corn; in another he incorporated the Portland Timbers insignia into his maze.

Many traditional artists paint linen or sculpt stone. For an agri-artist such as Craig Easterly, though, a cornfield makes a perfectly good canvas. For more than a decade, Craig has been chiseling through the 12-foot stalks of his 5-acre field to create what is from the ground a maze of rustling green tunnels and from above a stunning tableau of Portland themes and images. "I like to create designs that resonate with Portlanders and our friends in the greater Portland area," he said in a 2011 press release. One year, his work cut the city's bridges and rivers into the corn; in another he incorporated the Portland Timbers insignia into his maze.

Each fall, these Sauvie Island fields birth both Craig's famous corn maze and its evil twin, the Haunted Maize, which spooks its visitors at night with costumed actors and eerie animatronics. Along with its mazes, The Maize at The Pumpkin Patch also sprouts fall-centric family-friendly activities. Overall-clad patrons bounce along on free hayrides, get crowned king of the hay mountain, or mimic the beastly accents of farm animals in the big red barn.

At G6 Airpark, patrons of all ages bound safely between the open-jump arena and sports-based courts that comprise the 12,000 square-foot indoor trampoline park. Interconnected trampolines bordered by neon-green pads stretch from wall to wall, encouraging guests to defy gravity's demands as they spring into the air. On the dodge-ball court, jumpers fly while skirting air-filled orbs flung from opposing teams, and on the basketball court they vault over the rim, slam dunking. Guests practice more elaborate aerial flips and full-speed hugging exercises into the foam-filled trick zone, whereas the children-only area provides a safe haven for little ones. In between leaps and bounds, bouncers halt for a pizza or shaved ice from the café, which can also supply party fare for energy-burning, activity-filled birthday parties.

Since 1977, the Historic Motor Sports Association has sped classic racecars toward the limelight, exhibiting their still-speedy maneuvering and encouraging their preservation. Annual races put the steel and chrome beasts through their paces once more, and guests chat with drivers and crew members and slip get-well cards into the upholstery of hundreds of other vintage vehicles no longer in racing condition.