Discover Prineville: History, Golf, and Nature

Prineville brings together a range of travel interests: regional history at the A.R. Bowman Museum, golf at Meadow Lakes Golf Course, and hiking at the Crooked River Wetlands Complex. If you’re looking for a hotel in Prineville, these themes can shape the focus of your stay. Pioneer Park adds a log cabin museum and the annual Western Days event to the options.

Regional History at the A.R. Bowman Museum

Since 1971, the A.R. Bowman Museum has preserved and presented the history of Crook County and Central Oregon. It is located in a restored 1911 bank building listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The dates refer to different aspects: 1911 refers to the bank building, and 1971 to the museum’s work. A visit brings together regional history and a historic building. The geographic scope extends beyond Crook County to include Central Oregon.

The museum is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; admission is free. If you’re planning your visit for a particular day, check the hours before you travel. On Saturdays, visiting hours begin one hour later and end one hour earlier than Tuesday through Friday. This difference may be relevant to your day’s plans if the museum is a fixed part of your trip.

Pioneer Park and Western Days

Pioneer Park has a log cabin museum and hosts Western Days each year. This gives visitors two different reasons to visit the park: the museum as an institution and Western Days as a recurring event. If you’re traveling for Western Days, check the specific dates in advance. This lets you compare the event dates with your travel dates. The log cabin museum offers a distinct, culture-focused experience in the park.

Golf Along the Crooked River

Meadow Lakes Golf Course features an 18-hole championship course. The course crosses the Crooked River four times. The terrain is relatively flat, making it easy to walk. These details describe different features: the number of holes and championship status characterize the course, the river crossings describe part of its layout, and the terrain affects how easy it is to walk. If golf is one of your travel interests, you can consider these points separately rather than treating them as a single feature of the course.

Hiking at the Crooked River Wetlands Complex

The TRACK Trail at the Crooked River Wetlands Complex is a 1.5-mile loop through a wetland. Its length and loop format provide a clear framework for a hike. Hikers at the Crooked River Wetlands Complex can also observe a wide variety of wildlife. If you’d like to look for wildlife while hiking, this area offers the opportunity to do so alongside the described route. The route and the wildlife are two distinct points to consider when including this natural area in your travel plans.

Discover more destinations: Powell Butte.

Return to the main travel overview: Crook County.