OTE - Oregon Travel Experience

Alexander R. McLeod led the first overland expeditions to Oregon’s central and southern coast between 1826-27. McLeod, a Chief Trader for the Hudson’s Bay Company at Fort Vancouver, sought furs and trading opportunities with tribes such as the Tillamook, Umpqua, Coos, and Coquille. Local tribes also provided information, canoes, and other assistance.

The McLeod expeditions included French Canadians, such as Michel Laframboise who served as an interpreter, as well as Hawaiians, …

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The last camp on the weary journey across the Snake River plains. Here the Oregon Trail left the Snake River and wound overland to the Columbia. Here, camped Wilson Price Hunt, December 23, 1811; Capt. Bonneville, January 10, 1834; Nathaniel J. Wyeth, August 25, 1834; John C. Fremont, October 13, 1843.

Location: 4 miles east of Huntington in Farewell Bend State Park

Learn More: Visit Oregon Encyclopedia

The Oregon Trail crossed the hazardous Deschutes River at this point by floating the prairie schooners and swimming the livestock. An island at the river mouth was often utilized when the water was high and the ford dangerous. Pioneer women and children were frequently ferried across the stream by Native canoe men who made the passage in exchange for bright colored shirts and other trade goods.

Location: East side of Deschutes …

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Whether you are a history buff, a naturalist, or a visitor who loves it all, Coos Bay offers something for everyone. Spend the day exploring and you are certain to find something you enjoy!Crossing the BarWhile the natural harbor of Coos Bay has been a shipping hub since the 1850s, the bar at the entrance was a challenge to navigators. Bar pilot Capt. James B. and Sarah Magee built this …

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In the first week of January, 1812, a party of trappers and traders, members of the Astor Overland Expedition, crossed the Blue Mountains in this area. Traveling afoot in bitter cold, often waist deep in snow, they were the first white men in this area. The route they traveled to and from St. Louis and Astoria developed into the emigrant route to the Oregon Country later know as the Oregon …

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A remarkable construction enterprise of its time, the “Eldorado Ditch” carried water for placed mining from the Burnt River above Unity, over Eldorado Pass to Malheur City and the Willow Creek Drainage. Conceived and designed by William H. Packwood and constructed by Chinese labor, the ditch was started in 1863 and by May 1878 was carrying water more than 100 miles. The main ditch was five feet wide at the …

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On January 8, 1806 William Clark and perhaps fourteen of the famous expedition reached a Tillamook village of five cabins on a creek which Captain Clark named Ecola or Whale Creek. Three days earlier, two men sent out from Fort Clatsop to locate a salt making site had brought back whale blubber given them by Beach Indians. Appreciating the welcome addition to the explorers’ diet, Clark set out to find …

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This spot was famous in early days as Express Ranch an important relay station on the Umatilla-Boise Basin Stage and Freight Route. It was also a favorite camping place for emigrants and teamsters.

Location: In front of Durkee School

Learn More: Visit Oregon Encyclopedia

Water flowed across the high desert country during glacial times carving the Dry River Canyon visible beyond the marker. Near this part of Hwy 20, the canyon deepens from about 20 to 200 feet in less than half a mile. It continues northwest for two miles at depths of 300 to 400 feet before shallowing abruptly and disappearing beneath the basalt of Lava Top Butte that erupted from the north …

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