Review of Portland Bathhouses

[occumhungry]

I was in Portland for work last week and made it a point to visit the two bathhouses in the area: Steam and the new Hawks.

Steam

I visited Steam on Halloween Monday; I was hoping that the crowd would be good for Halloween, but I would say there were about 15 guys there. The check in process is quite long, you get a discount if you are fully COVID vaccinated, I just was a little uncomfortable how much data they took. They have a sheet with lube, poppers, and toys for purchase at the front which was convenient. Their towels are nice, fluffy with a good weight. I got a video room which was a typical size, with the typical thin mattress and sheets. There is a nice storage cubby with a lock under the bed which was a good touch. There were about 6 porn channels, most of them showing bareback sex.

Amenities wise, there is a small indoor hot tub, which was set at a nice temp and had nice strong jets. There is a shower nearby, but I couldn't figure out how to control the temp. The steam room was huge, but with one caveat. I felt that the temperature was not hot enough and the quality of the steam was quite thin. It lacked that heavy feel that I tend to like. Another negative was the noise when the steam was generated, it is very loud and quite sharp bouncing off all the hard surfaces. There are some neat public play spaces, but I never saw anyone use it. The main showers are nice and open, with a clear view to a TV lounge. That's where I was able to suck off a guy and saw some guys jerking off.

On the small second floor were lockers and the outdoor deck. I only peeked outside since it was cold and wet, but I'd imagine it would be a nice space to have some fun in the summer. One unique amenity was the availability of Oraquik HIV tests at the front, which you can take for free if you are so inclined. Overall, there wasn't much action when I went, but I heard weekends are much busier. Also, there is always mention of poor choice of music, which I totally agree with. Basic pop music that really doesn't provide a rhythm.

Hawks PDX

This is apparently a new location, but I had never been to the old one so I have no comparison. Parking is all street parking in a sketchy part of town. Park at your own risk. Check in was nice and smooth; they had a nice selection of toys and poppers for purchase, much more extensive than I have seen at other places. The rate is quite high, a week membership is 15 plus the cost of room/locker at the minimum. Towels were a little bit fluffier than Steam, but I think its because they are newer. After you check in, they have you take off your shoes and they hold them at the front. you have to use your own sandals or purchase one of theirs. At this same area, they have refreshments like soda and popcorn.

The rooms were similar to Steam, sliding doors which I had a hard time locking at both locations. The newer TVs at Hawks can allow you to steam your own porn, or you can select from one of the 4 channels, one of which plays Treasure Island Media porn. There are a few public play spaces on the 2nd floor, including some glory holes and slings. I was jerking off in front of the TV lounge which is where I had a fun time with a hot stud. An aside, this was one of the hottest experiences I had at a bathhouse.

There is a hot tub outside. It was an aboveground one soy you could control the jets without getting out. The water didn't seem too clean though, and while an outdoor tub is nice in the summer, it certainly wasn't in the cold rain. There is supposed to be an outdoor steam room and sauna eventually, but they weren't operating while I was there. The shower areas were nice, good water pressure and temperature. Watersports is also allowed in these areas. One oddity, there was a lack of towel hooks in the wet areas, but there were some in the public dry spaces. Overall, it was nice, but a majority of the space seemed dedicated to rooms. Also, lighting was brighter than normal throughout most of the facility. Music wise, it was better than Steam, but oddly enough I wished it was a little louder. The volume was quite low and kinda killed the ambiance.

The crowd was quite thin on a Thursday nigh, but one overarching thing I noticed was how friendly the locals were. Everyone was nice, smiled, made good chit chat, and seemed very open to experiences than other bathhouses I've been to. I would definitely go back to either one if I had the chance to visit them during Cumunion and or a weekend,

[NWUSHorny]

@occumhungry

It is interesting to see an outsiders review of the Portland bathhouses, I'm glad you found someone to actually hookup with at Hawks. I hope that if you ever get back up here on a weekend that you try and review them for weekends as well. Generally speaking bigger crowds don't equate to more sex, just guys being friendly. In my opinion based on going to bathhouses in quite a few cities is that the sexual intensity at the Portland clubs is usually extremely low. I see in another of your posts, that the 1st bathhouse and Cumunion Party that you attended was at Club 1350, which I have been to several times and was one of my favorite bathhouses. Unfortunately in my experience the kind of sexual action that 1350 had on a regular weeknight is more intense than a Portland Cumunion Party.

FYI the Cumunion Parties at Steam are on the 3rd Thursday and Hawks is on the 1st Saturday.

Edited November 7, 2022 by NWUSHorny