Corvallis Travel Guide

The Whiteside Theatre dates from an era in which movie theatres were also designed to host vaudeville acts and various other performances, and even have an orchestra perform the sound track to a silent movie.

On October 31, 2011 the 89th Anniversary of the structure was celebrated.

However, things haven't always looked so good for the theatre. In late 2002 it stopped its long run as part of the movie history of Corvallis, and a message went up on the marquee saying "Thanks Act III Theatres", obviously implying that competition from the large cinaplex chains had closed it. In reality, Tim Moyer Cinemas Inc. purchased the structure in 1985, and simply operated it until it decided to open a cinaplex - so the competition already owned this little theatre by then.

Today, it is operated by a non-profit group that hopes to keep it restored in its historic appearance, and yet still have events inside as part of its preservation. Today, they do in fact have occasional special events, concerts and performances, and it pays to check the web site to see what is on offer at this theatre.

Or, you could simply walk past and see what is on the posters out front.

Unlike certain other historic theatres, however, the basic structure inside and outside has not changed much from the 1920s. The hope is to restore it to its former glory, including re-installing the grand movie theatre pipe organ that originally graced its interior and provided sound for the silent films. It has been in storage for several decades but is available to be reinstalled. A number of the original architectural details, unfortunately, have been removed and would have to be recreated or approximated. Even so, the interior is still grand.

Dress Code: Should be appropriate to the event, and the events are varied.

Corvallis is not an extremely huge urban area, but despite this a number of bus routes run until fairly late at night during University session weeks - which is a symptom of this community originally being mostly oriented around Oregon State University. Yet, despite the fact that some bus routes operate until 2 in the morning, there is no transit service on Sundays, nor is there any transit service on major holidays (Independence Day, Memorial Day, Christmas Day, New Years Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Labor Day).

Routes and bus stops of the Corvallis bus system are featured on Google Transit, and Google Maps feature the bus stops. If you zoom into the map close enough it is possible to see them on the Google map of Corvallis.

There are several dedicated numbered bus routes, plus a connecting bus to Philomath. The "Beaver Bus" is so named as it only operates during the weeks that Oregon State University is in session, but anyone is able to ride it. It operates until 2 in the morning on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays covering three routes in various parts of the city.

The core services are based on a transit center that is located slightly west and north of the downtown area, very close to Central Park. A number of the routes change number when they go through the transit center and thus it is helpful to find out what bus number your bus will become as many times it is not necessary to transfer buses.

The Corvallis bus system no longer charges for riding, but if you are going to transfer to another route it is good to let the driver know as they can let the other driver of the other bus know they need to wait for a connecting passenger should your first bus be delayed for some reason.

The majority of the routes run hourly, with a few of the routes being rush hour only. A few of the routes are once every half hour during the peak commuter times.

Other than the connecting bus to Philomath, Corvallis Transit does not operate outside the Corvallis area. However, the following services offer connecting services to the outside world:

+ The Linn-Benton Loop Bus connects the transit system in Albany with the transit system in Corvallis and with Linn-Benton Community College.

+ HUT Shuttle provides a shuttle service specifically designed to deliver people to the Portland airport, but has stops in several cities along the way.

+ A once per day bus operates from Albany to Newport, with a stop in Corvallis. This is operated by Valley Retriever. An additional bus operates on certain days starting in Portland, with a stop in Salem and then Albany and on to Newport. This bus service is also reservable through the Amtrak web site as it serves as a connection for certain Amtrak trains.

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The store is part of The Arts Center (see separate tip ) that features an assortment of artwork and artistic events.

The items here are created by artists from all over the Willamette Valley, so what you see here is probably not going to be available in most other stores anywhere else. Except for what is on display in the gallery, very few of the items for sale in the store are original artwork. For example, there are post cards and greeting cards that were created from prints of original artwork.

What you find here will not be completely unique, therefore, but as the original artwork was made by a local artist the chances of finding a duplicate in some other city outside the region isn't very large.

What to buy: As this is written, you will find animal sculpture candles made from bees wax, doorbell buttons with unique decorations, various pottery items, hand crafted wooden toys, prints from a local artist featuring wildlife, native American and a number of other themes, and jewelery.

What to pay: As with most places in the USA, there is no negotiation over prices. What is put on the tag is what is expected.

A nice bike trip close to town is Vineyard Mountain. Five miles or so out of town is Vineyard Mountain and McDonald Forest. A 1and half mile or so climb up and you are near the top and a jumping off point for many miles of Mountain Biking. Oregon State University has Mcdonald Forest for research. Lots of trails and logging roads.

Equipment: One can either ride your road bike to the jump off point and back to town or you could either drive to the top with your Mountain bike or ride from town. For Mountaion Biking I recommend water and maybe a snack, bring a blanket for a picnic break in the secluded forest. You could spend a few hours and not see the same place, it is possible to get lost on some of the far out trails. Be careful.