5 Epic Stops for Your Eastern Oregon Road Trip
Oregon’s scenic beaches and picturesque waterfalls get lots of press, but there’s a whole other side of the state that many visitors don’t see. We love to get off the beaten path, so we went searching for spots the crowds have left behind. Our week-long Eastern Oregon road trip took us to these epic natural wonders and surpassed all our expectations!
1. Owyhee Canyonlands
We had never heard of the Owyhee Canyonlands before we set foot there, but now we can’t imagine how Oregon is keeping it a secret. A vast expanse almost as big as Yellowstone, it’s one of the last great unprotected wildernesses in the United States.
The stunning Owyhee River winds its way through imposing rock formations in the high desert, earning its nickname as Oregon’s Grand Canyon. There’s something for everyone in this untouched backcountry, from hiking and camping to white water rafting and horseback riding. These are also ancestral lands for the Northern Paiute, Bannock, and Shoshone tribes, including over 500 archaeological sites that chronicle the indigenous history which keeps this land sacred to these tribes today.
Driving through the Owyhee made us feel as though we’d gone back in time, to an era when Oregon was largely open land and humans were outnumbered by horses and cows. You could spend weeks here and not see it all, so check out the Owyhee Canyonlands Campaign to plan your visit.
2. Leslie Gulch
If you only have time to spend one day in the immense Owyhee Canyonlands, spend it in Leslie Gulch. We arrived with no idea what to expect and were completely blown away by what we found.
The eight-mile dirt road winds through spectacular volcanic rock formations sculpted by thousands of years of erosion. Had you dropped us there without a map, we would have thought we were in one of Utah’s famed National Parks. We even spied a family of bighorn sheep traversing the crags!
There are a few day hikes leaving just off the road. We took the Juniper Gulch hike and were treated to breathtaking views after less than an hour of easy hiking. Soaking in the beautiful slot canyons and monumental hoodoos, we kept asking each other, “Is this really Oregon?!”
Leslie Gulch is easily accessible and can be seen in just one day – though we highly recommend spending a night at Slocum Campground. These 12 campsites where Leslie Gulch meets the Owyhee River are the only spots where camping is allowed. You can watch the sun set past the otherworldly rock formations, and the stargazing can’t be beat.
Go here for driving directions and trail information.
3. Jordan Craters
The last thing I expected to find on our Eastern Oregon road trip was a volcano.
This 27-square-mile lava flow comes out of nowhere. One minute we were cruising past cows in wide open pastureland, and the next we were on the moon. Visitors can park right on the edge and hike a one-mile loop around Coffeepot Crater, the origin of the flow. If you’re feeling adventurous you can even clamber 150 feet down to the floor of the crater.
The sprawling volcanic field is made up of gray basalt that heats up like tarmac under the sun. The lava hardened into fascinating sculptures of bubbles and waves, and the walls of the crater are decorated in bright pink and orange rocks due to their mineral composition. Jordan Craters is one of the most recent volcanic flows in Oregon – locals even claim you can find boot prints in some places, though we didn’t see them for ourselves!
Fair warning: The road to the Jordan Craters should be left to four-wheel-drive vehicles (our converted Subaru Forester did great!). For more info on how to get there check out this post.
4. Painted Hills
The Painted Hills are another colorful wonder of geology. The layers of red, yellow, gold and black undulate over the rolling hills in a sweeping rainbow. It’s hard not to feel impossibly tiny, staring at millions of years of history etched into the earth.
There are a few short trails here to that will bring you to perfect spots to photograph the hills, but nothing that will take longer than several minutes. The short Painted Cove Trail loops on a boardwalk between vibrant red hills on both sides – another great spot to snap some pictures.
Be forewarned that the hills will look different depending on the weather and the time of day. We’re told they photograph best in the late afternoon during the golden hour before sunset, but we passed through mid-morning and were still able to get some great shots!
Check out this great post for detailed information on visiting the Painted Hills.
5. Alvord Desert
You know those awesome perspective photos that tourists take on the salt flats in Bolivia? You don’t have to fly to South America to get them.
Hidden in the southeast corner of Oregon is yet another ecosystem we weren’t expecting: The Alvord Desert. This huge dry lake bed made us feel like we’d arrived on Mars, except for the snowy Steens mountain range decorating the horizon. In the dry season, visitors can drive over the cracked surface of the playa with abandon. We spent hours careening around the 84 square miles of open desert, stopping to snap photos and enjoy the extraordinary landscape. (Fun fact: The women’s world land speed record was set here in 1976, by Kitty O’Neil racing across the Alvord at 512 miles per hour!).
As an added bonus, the Alvord Hot Springs is perched right on the edge of the desert. It’s managed by a lovely couple and their adorable rescued German shepherd, Rosie. Rustic structures have been built around the hot springs, with one half enclosed to shelter soakers from the wind, and the other side open to Alvord’s panoramic views. $15 will get you unlimited soaks for 24 hours, and as well as use of their campsites, restroom, and small general store.
After many hours spent traversing Oregon in our beloved Subaru, we unwound by watching the sun set over the mountains and desert from the delightfully sweltering hot springs.
The folks at Alvord Hot Springs also rent several MASH-style sleeping units for $60 a night. On our first trip to the Alvord we enjoyed a beautiful afternoon frolicking on the playa with the intention of camping there, but when the wind picked up and the temperature dropped at night, we were thankful for these shelters.
On our multiple trips back since, we’ve always camped for free out in the middle of the playa - the stargazing out there is ridiculous!
Want to visit these spots on your own Eastern Oregon road trip? Here’s our road trip route:
(We visited all these spots in five days, camping for free on Bureau of Land Management land with the exception of one night at Alvord Hot Springs.)
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