Things kids would like in Eastern Oregon? (Baker, La Grande, Hermiston)

[Maus]

The kids (9, 7, 2) and I are going to Eastern Oregon to visit my mom this next week. Most of our time will be in Baker, where we know about the Interpretative Center, the library, and the park, and, of course, Sumpter Valley Railroad.

 

We are also going to have a day in La Grande and a day in Hermiston this trip, and have no idea at all what might be fun to do in either of those places.

 

DS9 loves trains; DD7 likes science; DD2 likes slides and swings. Free or cheap is preferred, but we do have an America the Beautiful pass, so national parks etc. *are* free to us.

 

Anyone here have experience with kids in this area?

 

Thanks

[gardenmom5]

there's an observatory in La Grande, not sure of the name.

[justLisa]

The only thing that comes to mind is to visit the McNary lock and dam. You can watch the salmon run at the fish viewing room. It has been a number of years since I lived in eastern WA, but that was a neat place to go. I hear after 9/11 there was an increase in security so I'm not sure what they allow anymore.

[myfunnybunch]

My father lives in Baker City. We just got back from a visit there. I love it there and I'm trying to convince my dh to move there. :D Does your mom live in Baker?

 

There is a wonderful museum just across from the park, but there's an admission fee. It's got a rock collection, old carriages, and a neat Chinese collection from the Chinese families that lived in the area.

 

The Interpretive Center is free for school groups. If you tell them you're a homeschool family they will let you in for no charge, and they have a "Wagonmaster" (I think that's the name) program similar to the Junior Ranger program at national parks. Make sure to stop at the bottom of the hill below the center to walk in the actual wagon ruts!

 

There's a nice little hike on the way to Sumpter that would be good for littles. I am wracking my brains to remember the name...it's a little picnic area we stopped at for a rest stop and put it on the "Things to Do" list. My sister took my kids there. Flat, pretty, on the lake side after you pass the dam on the way to Sumpter. That's going to bug me all day now! lol If I remember the name I'll pm you.

 

If you're up for a 45-minute or so drive, go up to Anthony Lake. It's up in the mountains, and it's gorgeous! There is a lovely short hike around the lake which would be good even for a little one, lots of picnic tables, fire pits for s'mores or roasting hot dogs, huge boulders to climb. It's good fishing for kids if you can get hold of some poles. We just camped up there and had fish for breakfast and dinner every day. If you need directions to the lake or fishing supplies/license, you can stop at my dad's store, York's. It's just down the block from the park on the other side of the museum.

 

There's a walkway that connects the main park with another park/field. It goes along the river, it's not very long, and it would make a pleasant way to use up 20-30 minutes.

 

I don't know about Hermiston, since we usually drive right through on the way home. There is a children's museum in The Dalles that's pretty neat, and you might want to stop at Multnomah Falls on your way there or back. (I'm assuming you're coming from Portland direction. Not sure what's on the drive if you're coming from Boise.)

 

Have fun! :)

 

Cat

[Maus]

there's an observatory in La Grande, not sure of the name.

I'm not having much luck googling it: is it associated with Eastern Oregon University?

[ApronMama]

The casino near Pendleton has a fantastic interpretive center devoted to the Cayuse tribe. I haven't been there but my parents say its a must see.

 

A fun short stop if you are into Western gear is Hamley's in Pendleton (on your way to Hermiston).

 

You've definitely named the stops in Baker City. There is a lot to do at the interpretive center.

 

Look for wildlife in the hills between Pendleton and Baker City--we've seen big horn sheep, etc.

 

Not sure about Hermiston, but be sure to get a watermelon there!!

[Maus]

The only thing that comes to mind is to visit the McNary lock and dam. You can watch the salmon run at the fish viewing room. It has been a number of years since I lived in eastern WA, but that was a neat place to go. I hear after 9/11 there was an increase in security so I'm not sure what they allow anymore.

That looks fantastic! When I showed it to DH, he thinks his family visited it when he was about 12, on their way to B.C. for the World Expo.

 

Thanks!

[Anne in CA]

My mother lives in Baker City, I grew up in the area. You got good suggestions with the museum, and Sumpter. There is a gold dredge outside Sumpter that gives tours in the summer, and there is a train that you can ride to do the tours if I remember right. Outside Pendleton is Layman Hot Springs, a natural hot spring pool. There is one in Cove also. Anthony Lake is beautiful in the summer, so is Wallowa Lake, but that might be too far off the path you want to take.

[Maus]

My father lives in Baker City. We just got back from a visit there. I love it there and I'm trying to convince my dh to move there. :D Does your mom live in Baker?

She does! She actually grew up there, left when she graduated High School, and then went back about 10 years ago when my grandmother's health left her needing someone there. When Grandma died, Mom inherited her place, so she stayed. Then she met a widowed classmate at class reunion, and they married last fall.

 

There is a wonderful museum just across from the park, but there's an admission fee. It's got a rock collection, old carriages, and a neat Chinese collection from the Chinese families that lived in the area.

Oh, I was aware there was a museum there, but associated it with a quilt show I saw there years ago. It didn't occur to me that it might have kid friendly stuff in there. Thanks!

 

The Interpretive Center is free for school groups. If you tell them you're a homeschool family they will let you in for no charge, and they have a "Wagonmaster" (I think that's the name) program similar to the Junior Ranger program at national parks. Make sure to stop at the bottom of the hill below the center to walk in the actual wagon ruts!

My kids were really little the last time we went. It happened to be free national park day, or whatever that's called. I think we spent 90% of our time in the kid activity room while my oldest played and my second (then my youngest) slept in her stroller. We need to do the walk. We happened to follow the Oregon Trail on the other end last summer (Missouri/Nebraska/Wyoming), and we need to follow up.

 

There's a nice little hike on the way to Sumpter that would be good for littles. I am wracking my brains to remember the name...it's a little picnic area we stopped at for a rest stop and put it on the "Things to Do" list. My sister took my kids there. Flat, pretty, on the lake side after you pass the dam on the way to Sumpter. That's going to bug me all day now! lol If I remember the name I'll pm you.

 

If you're up for a 45-minute or so drive, go up to Anthony Lake. It's up in the mountains, and it's gorgeous! There is a lovely short hike around the lake which would be good even for a little one, lots of picnic tables, fire pits for s'mores or roasting hot dogs, huge boulders to climb. It's good fishing for kids if you can get hold of some poles. We just camped up there and had fish for breakfast and dinner every day. If you need directions to the lake or fishing supplies/license, you can stop at my dad's store, York's. It's just down the block from the park on the other side of the museum.

 

There's a walkway that connects the main park with another park/field. It goes along the river, it's not very long, and it would make a pleasant way to use up 20-30 minutes.

My son is planning to bring his pole. My mom is very close to the Powder, along that walking trail that leaves from the park, going, uh, North maybe. (Same direction as La Grande, not Ontario. Sad that I orient by freeway stops! LOL!)

 

I don't know about Hermiston, since we usually drive right through on the way home. There is a children's museum in The Dalles that's pretty neat, and you might want to stop at Multnomah Falls on your way there or back. (I'm assuming you're coming from Portland direction. Not sure what's on the drive if you're coming from Boise.)

 

Have fun! :)

 

Cat

We're coming through Boise, though my uncle lives near Oregon City, so we've been through The Dalles. I'm very curious about that very European looking church you can see from I-84 there. That whole area looks a lot like Southern Germany anyway, with all the green, rolling hills, and then you see that church!

[Maus]

The casino near Pendleton has a fantastic interpretive center devoted to the Cayuse tribe. I haven't been there but my parents say its a must see.

 

A fun short stop if you are into Western gear is Hamley's in Pendleton (on your way to Hermiston).

 

You've definitely named the stops in Baker City. There is a lot to do at the interpretive center.

 

Look for wildlife in the hills between Pendleton and Baker City--we've seen big horn sheep, etc.

 

Not sure about Hermiston, but be sure to get a watermelon there!!

I'll google that intrepretive center, that sounds like a good stop.

[Maus]

My mother lives in Baker City, I grew up in the area. You got good suggestions with the museum, and Sumpter. There is a gold dredge outside Sumpter that gives tours in the summer, and there is a train that you can ride to do the tours if I remember right. Outside Pendleton is Layman Hot Springs, a natural hot spring pool. There is one in Cove also. Anthony Lake is beautiful in the summer, so is Wallowa Lake, but that might be too far off the path you want to take.

Your mom doesn't happen to "hang" with the crowd at the senior center, does she? That would be funny if our moms know each other! My dad, who also grew up in Baker, still has a sister there, too. She "hangs" at the senior center, too. It's funny, because when you hear them talk, it sounds like they still form cliches based on what graduating class they were in! Talk about being lock-stepped from childhood!

 

I'll google those hot springs. I think I was at Wallowa Lake once, to visit a cousin of my mom, who was working out near there. Is there a place called Joseph out that direction? I think that's where she was working.

[Maus]

Can I just say, I love The Hive! I was having mixed feelings about this trip, because as much as I want to see my mom, I wasn't sure how to keep the kids happy for a whole ten days. Now I know!

[Anne in CA]

Your mom doesn't happen to "hang" with the crowd at the senior center, does she? That would be funny if our moms know each other! My dad, who also grew up in Baker, still has a sister there, too. She "hangs" at the senior center, too. It's funny, because when you hear them talk, it sounds like they still form cliches based on what graduating class they were in! Talk about being lock-stepped from childhood!

 

I'll google those hot springs. I think I was at Wallowa Lake once, to visit a cousin of my mom, who was working out near there. Is there a place called Joseph out that direction? I think that's where she was working.

 

Everyone in Baker is still operating on the same social status as high school, lol. That is why I don't live there, because I had none, lol.

 

My mom works, so she doesn't hang out at the senior center. She is going to quit work next week when the attorney she works for moves his office to smaller space and wont need her anymore. Then maybe she will spend time at the senior center, lol. In a town that size I am sure they know each other.

[Anne in CA]

Oh yes, Joseph is right by Wallowa Lake.

[Dolphin]

My mother lives in Baker City, I grew up in the area. You got good suggestions with the museum, and Sumpter. There is a gold dredge outside Sumpter that gives tours in the summer, and there is a train that you can ride to do the tours if I remember right. Outside Pendleton is Layman Hot Springs, a natural hot spring pool. There is one in Cove also. Anthony Lake is beautiful in the summer, so is Wallowa Lake, but that might be too far off the path you want to take.

 

:iagree:

All the Sumpter stuff was great. My kids loved the train and the gold dredge.

 

Walking around the interpretive center you can walk in the ruts the wagons left. It is pretty cool. My kids loved the center. Check in when you get there, they have a junior ranger program. It gives them a worksheet (free) and then at the end they can get sworn in as a wagon leader.

 

The Eastern Oregon Museum in Haines is one of my favorite ever museums. $5 for the whole family

http://www.oregonmuseums.org/sectionindex.asp?sectionid=87

 

It is in an old gymnasium, they use risers for a lot of the stuff. Some things are behind glass, but a lot of it isn't. They have set part up as an old school room, you can pick up the books and flip through them. Very hands on. There is a scavenger hunt the kids can do. They have 2 out buildings, one with carriages (that you can climb into) The other is the old railway station.

[Anne in CA]

Oh, my third grade teacher manages the museum at Haines, lol.

[myfunnybunch]

In a town that size I am sure they know each other.

 

LOL, I bet they know my dad too, or who he is anyway--he's the mayor. :) He loves Baker City. When they did the Best of the Road Most Beautiful Small Town contest, he did a video interview and he got a little teary when he talked about how beautiful it is there, which totally embarrassed him even after we assured him it is neat that he cares about his town so much. :D It is a beautiful town. Just walking around downtown is kind of fun, especially over by the courthouse and the Geiser Grand Hotel. Lots of old houses and buildings.

 

I've even gotten ideas from this thread--next time we visit, we'll go to the museum in Haines. We always mean to go, but never have.

 

There's a pretty little hiking trail by the dredge in Sumpter too, just a little loop. You can ride the train up, hike the trail and see the dredge, then catch the train back.

 

Another super fun activity we did last year was tracking down the Old-Time Fiddlers Association and going to an Old-Time Fiddlers Jam. It was a blast, and all of the older folks loved having families with kids there.

 

ETA: And you'll be in rodeo country! At the Miner's Jubilee parade on Saturday there were many rodeo princesses for upcoming rodeos in surrounding towns. You might be able to catch a rodeo, or part of one, while you're there. :)

 

Cat

Edited July 24, 2012 by myfunnybunch

[Maus]

Everyone in Baker is still operating on the same social status as high school, lol. That is why I don't live there, because I had none, lol.

 

My mom works, so she doesn't hang out at the senior center. She is going to quit work next week when the attorney she works for moves his office to smaller space and wont need her anymore. Then maybe she will spend time at the senior center, lol. In a town that size I am sure they know each other.

Apparently they not only know each other, they are really good friends! "M" came over to my mom's today to meet us, and Mom introduced her as her best friend. After she left, Mom said something about her "retiring," now that the attorney she is working for has a smaller office.

 

What!!!! No way!!!! I told her about this thread, and she said, "M's daughter is named Anne. I don't know if she homeschools, but I've met her once or twice." She called "M" and confirmed it! (My mom is LC, who just married FW.)

[Maus]

My father lives in Baker City. We just got back from a visit there. I love it there and I'm trying to convince my dh to move there. :D Does your mom live in Baker?

 

....

 

If you need directions to the lake or fishing supplies/license, you can stop at my dad's store, York's. It's just down the block from the park on the other side of the museum.

 

Cat

My mom also knows your dad, though he may not know her, except maybe by sight. Before Grandma died (4ish years ago), Mom used to stop in to York's at least once a week to buy Grandma's "scratchers."

 

Baker really is a small town!

[Anne in CA]

My mother called me to tell me that she met someone I had spoken to online! It is a much smaller world than I had imagined, lol. Although I was already surprised that so many people knew things to do around Baker City, this is more surprising.

[Anne in CA]

Oh, Maus, I think my dd attended your mother's wedding. When she stayed with my mother last year she went to the wedding of one of my mother's friends and raved about the food.

[Maus]

Oh, Maus, I think my dd attended your mother's wedding. When she stayed with my mother last year she went to the wedding of one of my mother's friends and raved about the food.

If it was an actual wedding, it wasn't my mom. They got married in Utah, at the court where my mom used to clerk. All her former co-workers took a "lunch" break and came in to witness the ceremony.

 

I think they had a pre-wedding party/reception there in Baker, though, with many of their friends pitching in to provide food, etc.

[Maus]

Thanks again, everyone, for all the suggestions! We just got home and had a great time, though we started off with a bang.

 

We hadn't been in Baker for an hour when my two year old got her finger stuck in a tiny little hole in the bottom of the "stake hole" in the back of our truck. (I took boxes of stuff to my mom's and brought some furniture home, so I drove our pickup instead of my little car.) Stake holes are the holes along the side of the bed of the truck that you can string rope or bungies into, to secure a load, for those who don't know.

 

She was in the bed of the truck with me because my mom lives along the river and I wanted to keep an eye on her while we unloaded the truck, and while I was handing a box to my uncle, she stuck her arm in the stake hole and her index finger into the "tiny little hole" (her words) at the bottom of the stake hole (probably designed to drain water from.) She got her "tiny little finger" in there past the knuckle and couldn't get it out. My uncle took the tail light off, and we could touch her finger, but couldn't push it up. We tried vegetable oil, and ice water, and ice, and still couldn't get her out.

 

(It's just lunch on her shirt.)

 

We finally called 911, and they showed up two at a time (at one point, there were six rescue workers there, but two were just delivering something). They tried for a long time, and finally cut the truck. She was okay, just scraped. She was pretty calm the whole time right up until they turned on the power tools and started cutting, when she started yelling, "Get away from me! You scaring me! Go away!" We figured she was trapped there for about an hour and a half.

 

The edge where they cut, after she was out, and they tried to put everything back in place as much as possible.

[myfunnybunch]

Yikes!! Poor baby! :grouphug:

 

Cat

[myfunnybunch]

My mom also knows your dad, though he may not know her, except maybe by sight. Before Grandma died (4ish years ago), Mom used to stop in to York's at least once a week to buy Grandma's "scratchers."

 

Baker really is a small town!

 

My mother called me to tell me that she met someone I had spoken to online! It is a much smaller world than I had imagined, lol. Although I was already surprised that so many people knew things to do around Baker City, this is more surprising.

 

:iagree:

 

I told my dad that this message board with all of its members had three members with parents living in the same small town. Pretty amazing!

 

Cat