Town of the Week: La Grande, Oregon
July 3, 1999

It makes no difference whether you're a white-knuckle, whitewater-rafting, hair-raising hang glider or a peaceful, serene bird-watching picnicker, you can't find a more breathtaking stop to do each of these than the Grand Ronde valley of northeast Oregon. This is in the foothills of the Blue Mountains, Oregon's oldest land.

The Oregon Trail cuts through here, wagon ruts still evident on the hillsides. Those thousands of wagons descended 1700 feet to the valley floor, which is 20 miles long and 12 miles wide, and for most it was the first grass they'd seen since Missouri.

Ben Brown set up a tavern here and the town which grew up at this location was called Browntown, Brown's Village, Grand Rhond City, and finally, La Grande. The countryside is rugged and precipitous, but strikingly scenic, and you can drive highway 30 up the gorge into the mountains where the wagons rolled.

Agriculture and timber drive the town's economic machine, especially grass seeds which are shipped around the world. This town of 12,000 is the seat of Union County, and home to Easter Oregon State College and its McKenzie Theatre and Nightingale Art Gallery. The Eagle Cap Wilderness and surrounding forests, wild rivers and mountains offer year-round recreation. It's on the Hells Canyon Scenic Byways, and its our Town of the Week, La Grande, Oregon.