Museums/History

A GUIDE TO CHINESE AMERICAN HERITAGE & CULTURE

Driving through the Columbia River Gorge it hits you that over the course of thousands of years, the landscape was carved from the earth creating the majestic beauty.

Then you realize you need to keep your eyes on the road.

The gorge's unending beauty is only matched by the rich history and lessons it can teach people willing to learn. Lucky for us, there is the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center and Museum in The Dalles.

When the weather closed it, it hit like a hammer.

Without warning you find yourself in the Pacific Ocean being swallowed up by 30-foot seas - no hope of swimming to the shore you know is mere yards away.

Then, out of the blackness, comes a spotlight and a man hanging off of a boat reaching to pluck you from the ocean's grasp.

That's the first thing you see when you drive up to the Columbia River Maritime Museum - the real life 44-foot Coast Guard rescue boat in action.

The Coos Historical and Maritime Museum is a non-profit with a mission of enhancing the intellectual, civic, and cultural life of Oregon’s south coast by facilitating awareness of local history.

This tree was given to Douglas County by Binger Hermann. Hermann served in the U.S. Congress from 1885 until 1897, and again from 1903 until 1907. During the intervening years, he was Commissioner of the General Land Office in Washington, D.C. The occasion for the tree donation is not known positively, but research suggests that it was planted very near the turn of the century, possibly at a dedication ceremony for courthouse, which was rebuilt after a fire on December 7, 1898.

Truly a grand northwest lodge, the historic 71-room Crater Lake Lodge originally opened in 1915 and is located on the edge of the caldera overlooking Crater Lake. The lodge was reopened after extensive renovation in 1995 and offers an atmosphere reminiscent of the 1920s and immerses visitors in its rustic charm.

Few places on earth command overwhelming awe from observers, but Crater Lake, in south central Oregon, certainly does. Even in a region of volcanic wonders, Crater Lake can only be described in superlatives. Stories of the deep blue lake can never prepare visitors for their first breathtaking look from the brink of this 6 mile wide caldera which was created by the eruption and collapse of Mt. Mazama almost 7,000 years ago.

The Craterian Ginger Rogers Theater is southern Oregon's state-of-the-art community performing arts center. The facility features excellent acoustics and sightlines, an impressive array of theatrical equipment and is operated by a professional staff. The auditorium is intimate and comfortable and seats just 732 patrons, yet the stage can accommodate large national concert, dance and theatrical tours.

Although it is now known that Dawn Redwoods graced the landscape of the world's northern temperate regions during the time of the dinosaurs (Late Cretateous), fossils of this species were first discovered in 1941 in Japan. At that time the tree was believed to have been long extinct. But in 1944, live trees were found in a remote valley in central China. Fossils have since been discovered in the Columbia River Gorge. Harvard's Arnold Arboretum arranged for seeds to be collected in China in 1947; these seeds were then dispersed to several arboreta and institutions in the U.S. in 1948.

Length: 106 miles / 169.6 km
Time to Allow: 5-7 hours
Fees: A few museums charge fees. So do some campgrounds.

Driving Directions
From Bend, take State Highway 372 (Century Drive) east for 4.5 miles to the boundary of the Deschutes National Forest where the Byway begins. The Byway comes to an end as Forest Route 46 meets State Highway 58.