That depends on what your needs are.

The Vancouver and Portland area has something like 2.3 million people living in the metropolitan area. The weather can be damp, wet and cool for much of the year with limited sunshine. Summers, which usually start in late June into September are nice with highs to 100 degrees. The good thing is humidity is low.

Living here (I live in western Oregon and south of Salem), the outdoor activities are really extensive. The coast is an hour west, Cascades an hour east, the lakes I enjoy are an hour to three hours away. There are also many rivers around for fishing, rafting, canoeing and kayaking.

Then if you travel further east , north or south you'll find a completely different climate and terrain. Both states are pretty large with much to do and see.

As for a retirement destination, I think we don't have enough sunshine.

The Bend area, which is 3 hours further east does offer lots of sunshine. We like to vacation around the Bend area to enjoy the lakes and camping. There's also some good road and mountain biking around the Bend area, which is often referred to as, central Oregon.

What I do like about Oregon and Washington, is the diversity that the different climate zones offer. Coastal beaches, rain forest, high mountains (Cascades), wine country, farmland, high desert, and northeast Oregon has the mini Alps or better known as the Eaglecap wilderness.

Oregon is fairly wide, it takes apx. 13 hours to drive from west to east. Hopefully this gives you an idea about the diversity that's available.