Fodor's Expert Review National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center

Head 5 miles east of Baker City to this sprawling facility, containing 12,000 square feet of galleries, for a superb exploration of pioneer life in the mid-1800s. From 1841 to 1861 about 300,000 people made the 2,000-mile journey from western Missouri to the Columbia River and the Oregon Coast, looking for agricultural land in the West. A simulated section of the Oregon Trail will give you a feel for camp life and the settlers' impact on Native Americans; an indoor theater presents movies and plays. A 4-mile round-trip trail winds from the center to the actual ruts left by the wagons.