It’s finally time to journey to the City of Roses!

Katie and Jordan scratch the surface of a dozen years of adventures in Portland, Oregon and reminisce about the dance injury that led to Jordan giving Katie a piggyback ride to urgent care.

Jordan’s earliest Portland memories are wrapped around nearly being abducted by the circus and going to his first concert to see the dream performer every 90s kid was dying to see: Neil Diamond.

Katie claims Portland is kinda goth and Jordan claims it’s just introverted.

The duo discuss Portlandia, the United States’ second-largest copper statue that is under some intense copyright by its creator.

Jordan learns all about the legendary Portland figure Bill Naito and how he shaped much of the modern identity of downtown Portland for the better.

Have a travel story to share? Send a voice memo or write a cute lil' mini-memoir to exploregonianspodcast@gmail.com and remember to follow us on Instagram and-and and if you'd like to show us some love or send a "thank you" if you enjoyed the episode, you can treat us to a coffee! Thanks for listening!

Katie and Jordan reckon with possibly being Disney Adults in Denial as they return to The Happiest Place on Earth for Halloween time.

The duo attend the popular Oogie Boogie Bash and wear unexpected costumes (that Jordan was 80 percent sure would be allowed in) that ultimately led to very fun interactions with everyone in the park. Katie goes on a deep dive in a rabbit hole exploring the convoluted backstory of the event.

Jordan shares his wisdom-nuggets about the first Disneyland Halloween event in 1959 and the most important one (with wild results) on Oct. 31, 1994 — on a Monday, of all things! He also reveals that the Southern California theme parks are largely responsible for how Halloween has taken hold of the American imagination over the past fifty years.

Also, Jordan will die on the hill that "Ghost Galaxy" is the worst seasonal overlay in any Disney park worldwide. Ew.

Have a travel story to share? Send a voice memo or write a cute lil' mini-memoir to exploregonianspodcast@gmail.com and remember to follow us on Instagram and-and and if you'd like to show us some love or send a "thank you" if you enjoyed the episode, you can treat us to a coffee! Thanks for listening!

There is a famous anomaly in Southern Oregon that Katie and Jordan finally physically find themselves in this week.

The Oregon Vortex has confused, frustrated, and mystified people for nearly a century. People appear way shorter or taller than they usually do! Things roll uphill! A broom can stand by itself! By. Itself. This mysterious sphere of a vortex has even inspired a Disney animated series.

Katie and Jordan discuss what it was like to visit the legendary place in Oregon that is equal parts science experiment and roadside attraction.

Have a travel story to share? Send a voice memo or write a cute lil' mini-memoir to exploregonianspodcast@gmail.com and remember to follow us on Instagram and-and and if you'd like to show us some love or send a "thank you" if you enjoyed the episode, you can treat us to a coffee! Thanks for listening!

Battling intense allergies and/or a sinus infection, Katie discusses her first solo outing as a traveler: the Galápagos Islands. She journeyed from Colombia to Quito, Ecuador before hopping on a plane and a boat to the archipelago, which is an excellent word.

Jordan throws out the trivia nugget for the old definition of “galápago” then proceeds to make two excellent puns on the word that impresses nobody.

Katie’s first time snorkeling was off the islands and when she wasn’t in the water, she was obsessed with the marine iguanas and has dozens of photos to prove it.

While in South America (which someone once debated Katie that she wasn’t “really” in South America because it really doesn’t start until Peru), Katie describes her Spanish ability as “mal” which translates to bad as in “evil” and not bad as in “bad”.

Have a travel story to share? Send a voice memo or write a cute lil' mini-memoir to exploregonianspodcast@gmail.com and remember to follow us on Instagram and-and and if you'd like to show us some love or send a "thank you" if you enjoyed the episode, you can treat us to a coffee! Thanks for listening!

The river is calling Katie and Jordan’s name this week as they head south along Oregon’s Highway 138 (a.k.a. “The Highway of Waterfalls”) along the special North Umpqua River!

Katie takes Jordan whitewater rafting on a “ship of a raft” for his birthday and she is still unsure if he could do a full day on the water. Jordan is moved as they navigate downriver along an area important to the Umpqua people, which is a tribe he is allegedly descended from.

They soak their aching bodies in the Umpqua Hot Springs after and feel like the hot springs can have more of a party vibe than they’re into. To get into the birthday spirit, however, Jordan decides to get into his birthday suit.

Katie and Jordan end their Umpqua River journey at a historic inn that boasts a 14-page, 7,000-word history, featuring about 17 main characters on its “About” page.

Have a travel story to share? Send a voice memo or write a cute lil' mini-memoir to exploregonianspodcast@gmail.com and remember to follow us on Instagram and-and and if you'd like to show us some love or send a "thank you" if you enjoyed the episode, you can treat us to a coffee! Thanks for listening!

We’re in the Deep South now, according to a pair of high school girls working in a Laurel, Mississippi ice cream parlor.

Katie and Jordan discuss how they never expected to romp around Mississippi and visit the homeland of the popular HGTV show “Home Town” and realize our best friend is a Ben Napier doppelgänger.

Jordan wonders if Laurel overemphasizes fun, eye-catching design in its downtown over quality businesses and Katie reminds everyone the city is home to one Lance Bass.

Katie’s art-spirit is reawakened at the (free and spectacular and enormous) Lauren Rogers Art Museum, which is home to some excellent collections and some very tiny baskets.

Have a travel story to share? Send a voice memo or write a cute lil' mini-memoir to exploregonianspodcast@gmail.com and remember to follow us on Instagram and-and and if you'd like to show us some love or send a "thank you" if you enjoyed the episode, you can treat us to a coffee! Thanks for listening!

Hit the deck! This week, Jordan tells Katie how Cannon Beach got its name — and it definitely has to do with a shipwreck. Katie talks about her favorite four-legged roaming residents of Cannon Beach and Jordan tries to untangle his own childhood socioeconomic mental block with the popular Oregon Coast town.

Katie saw Little John smoking a cigarette outside the local community theater and Jordan tells the tale of two Haystack Rocks and John Quincy Adams erasure in downtown Cannon Beach.

Have a travel story to share? Send a voice memo or write a cute lil' mini-memoir to exploregonianspodcast@gmail.com and remember to follow us on Instagram and-and and if you'd like to show us some love or send a "thank you" if you enjoyed the episode, you can treat us to a coffee! Thanks for listening!

Missoula, Montana holds a special place in Katie and Jordan’s hearts because it was the first big stop on two separate road trips.

Why is Missoula called ZooTown? Katie instantly figured it out and Jordan is probably still struggling with it.

The duo have never been to Missoula in the daytime and once rolled into town right when a major concert was starting in the university’s football stadium that neither knew about, but ran to listen to against a chain-link fence like a pair of street urchins.

Jordan attempts to dunk on Lewis and Clark with mixed results and all of the enormous hillside monograms in Montana remind him of Sesame Street.

Have a travel story to share? Send a voice memo or write a cute lil' mini-memoir to exploregonianspodcast@gmail.com and remember to follow us on Instagram and-and and if you'd like to show us some love or send a "thank you" if you enjoyed the episode, you can treat us to a coffee! Thanks for listening!