When I saw that Jeff Merkley published an updated Oregon Treasures Quest for 2025, I knew I had to work it into our travel plans. It’s a call to visit special places across the state–the WHOLE state, not just Portland and the coast. This is a quest that speaks to me. As I adopted Oregon as home in my adult life, I am always seeking to get to know all of the things that make Oregon…Oregon. It’s the mountains and the valleys, the deserts and the canyons, the coasts and the rivers, the cities and the rural outposts. As our senator for many years now, Merkley understands and appreciates the great diversity of people and places in the state. And now I took it on as my mission to visit as many counties on the list as I could.
Oregon is divided into 36 counties. They get bigger as you travel further east. Most of the population is centered in Portland and the valley, but there is so much more to see beyond that. In this post I’ll share the entire list of counties, plus the sites I visited. (Note that in the quest offers a few different places to visit in each county, so you’ve got some choices.) Then I’ll make a few recommendations based on my experiences. To keep it simple, I’m focusing on my 2025 travels only; I’ve been to many more places on the list in years past. Let’s tour Oregon!
List of Oregon counties
Baker County: National Oregon Trail Interpretive Center
Benton County: Marys Peak
Clackamas County
Clatsop County
Columbia County
Coos County: Face Rock
Crook County
Curry County: Natural Bridge Viewpoint
Deschutes County: Smith Rock
Douglas County
Gilliam County: Earl Snell Memorial Park
Grant County: Bates State Park
Harney County: Steens Mountain Backcountry Byway
Hood River County
Jackson County: Upper Table Rock
Jefferson County: Black Butte
Josephine County: Wolf Creek Inn
Klamath County: Crater Lake
Lake County: Fort Rock
Lane County: Hobbit Trail
Lincoln County: Oregon Coast Aquarium
Linn County
Malheur County
Marion County: Silver Falls
Morrow County: Blue Mountains Scenic Byway
Multnomah County: Vista House/Crown Point
Polk County: Baskett Slough
Sherman County
Tillamook County: Neskowin Ghost Forest
Umatilla County: Historic town of Echo
Union County: Anthony Lakes
Wallowa County: Maxwell Heritage Interpretive Center
Wasco County: Mosier Twin Tunnels
Washington County
Wheeler County: Painted Hills
Yamhill County
Favorite overall: Anthony Lakes
You know it’s impossible to get a “favorite” out of me, so this was a really difficult decision. But I chose Anthony Lakes because it’s one of those places that has a lot of different experiences to offer. It’s stunningly beautiful, off the beaten path and characteristically Oregon. Nestled in the Blue Mountains of Eastern Oregon, Anthony Lakes Resort is a small but mighty ski operation in the winter and a hiking, trail running, mountain biking and paddling destination in the summer. There are several campgrounds and even a pizza place that is open on the weekends. On our visit, we snagged a lovely first-come, first-served campsite at Grande Ronde Lake and spent a couple days exploring. It’s nice to come down from a mountain hike to delicious pizza and beer with a view!
Best of the coast: Hobbit Trail
I highlight the coast just because we drove down most of the length of it on this trip and there were SO many coastal spots on the Quest. Many of the stops were quick ones at viewpoints, but this little hike stood out as being the most fun and picturesque. We did this hike early in the morning, so we enjoyed the walk mostly by ourselves. Hiking through the dense, twisted shore pine is always a fun adventure. When we reached the beach on the other side, there was much more exploring to do. We found a few tidepools and some interesting wildflowers growing on the damp cliffs above the sand. We may also have snacked on some evergreen huckleberries on our hike back to the van.
Most fun adventure: Mosier Twin Tunnels
Despite all my years of living in Portland, I’d never made it to the Mosier Twin Tunnels before this trip. We decided to ride our bike up through the tunnels and back on a beautiful spring day. The timing was utterly perfect: the hillsides were lush with lupine, buckwheat and other Gorge wildflowers. Sure, we had to sweat a little bit pedaling uphill but it was so worth it! The tunnels, the Columbia River views, the wildflowers, the happiness on everyone’s faces…what a magical day! You can pick your distance on this one so it can be a quick visit or a full day trip.
Prettiest drive: Steens Mountain Backcountry Byway
There are lots of beautiful drives in Oregon, but the Steens Mountain Backcountry Byway stands out as one of the best. I was thrilled that the entire loop road was open this year so we could see the mountain from all angles. It’s the highest road in Oregon, topping out at almost 10,000′! There’s so much to do once you make the trek out there, although services are limited to none. We camped on the Steens for a week or so, with plenty of hiking, sightseeing, stargazing, exploring and wildflower photography to keep us entertained. It’s 5 hours from anywhere to get to the Steens, so it’s a bit of a commitment. But you won’t find anyplace so unique in all of Oregon.
Most educational: Maxwell Heritage Interpretive Center
The Maxwell Heritage Interpretive Center tells the story of Black, indigenous and immigrant loggers who worked in the town of Maxwell way out in Wallowa County. The creation of one of the daughters of a logger in Maxwell, this passion project is now an incredible time capsule of these stories not often shared in standard history books. The Center contains artifacts, photographs, documents and oral histories that document what life was like in these logging camps. It also hosts an annual gathering and works to keep this history alive in the community. We had an excellent guide during our visit who brought the plaques on the wall to life and answered all of our questions.
Biggest surprise: Wolf Creek Inn
This was one of the few stops on the list that I had never heard of before. Since it’s conveniently located right off I-5, I decided we could take a night off the road and sleep in this historic hotel. Today, Wolf Creek is a tiny, unincorporated community located between Roseburg and Grants Pass. It’s the oldest continuously operating hotel in the Pacific Northwest. Before cars and interstates existed, it served as a resting place for folks traveling between Portland and San Francisco. Today, it still offers several cute rooms for overnight stays and there’s even a restaurant. We also discovered a ghost town nearby that had some buildings and interpretive signs, also managed by Oregon State Parks. It was a lovely place to visit.
Honorable mention: Oregon Dunes
I was excited to see that the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area was on the list under Douglas County. I planned a hike at my favorite trail in the region, the John Dellenback DunesTrail. Since we were camping nearby at at Tugman State Park, I worked out a slight variation on this hike that began from our campsite. But as we approached the road to the campground, we passed a sign saying “Leaving Douglas County.” NOOOO! Being a stickler for the rules, I just couldn’t “count” my planned hike towards the list. Technically, it wasn’t in Douglas County. Oh well, I did the hike anyways and it was AWESOME. Why do I love this hike so much? It’s in a protected natural area that’s off limits of OHVs. Although I could still hear them on my hike, I didn’t have to encounter any or see any tire tracks on the dunes. It was just me and the plants and the interesting animal tracks in the sand.
Now it’s your turn
I have always enjoyed working on lists, even if I have no intent to finish them. I set a goal to visit 25 places this summer and I made it right before we drove into California for the fall! Maybe the next time I’ll be in Oregon for a full calendar year, I can make a goal to get to all 36 counties.
Whether you tackle this quest, find another list or invent your own, it’s fun to have some directed goals related to travel. I enjoy lists as starting points when I’m overwhelmed by choice. I also like that they encourage me to go to places that I’d never heard about or that I didn’t think were worth going to. Although I didn’t love every place on this list, I always found something good about it. Maybe I discovered something unique on the way there or I gained a new perspective or stopped at a great restaurant nearby that I wouldn’t otherwise have gotten to.
If you have further questions about the places I highlighted or want to learn about the other places I visited, leave a comment below. I hope you find or create a travel list of your own and start working on it!