Joseph, Oregon

Attractions

Wallowa Lake Tramway

With the opening of the gondola in 1970, Wallowa County added one of it’s most popular attractions. The 3700′ vertical ascent to the summit of Mt. Howard is a memorable experience. The exciting trip to the top of the mountain allows one to enjoy the 4000′ view as the gondola rises above Wallowa Lake Village and the blue waters of Wallowa Lake.

The Summit Grill at the Tramway upper terminal offers two food and beverage options. The Summit Grill serves both the Alpine Patio and our Express Window both are located at the tramway’s upper terminal which sits at the 8,150 foot level of Mt. Howard.

The alpine patio offers guest table service dining overlooking the beautiful Wallowa Lake and the majestic peaks of the Wallowa Mountains. This European alpine setting is a spectacular environment in which to enjoy a leisurely lunch, snack, or a favorite beverage.

Before or after eating at the Summit Grill & Alpine Patio, we invite you to go for a walk and enjoy over 2 miles of trails with spectacular viewpoints and an abundance of great scenery.

The quiet peacefulness at the summit area and dynamic scenery is why Wallowa Lake Tramway was designated “Best View in Oregon” and is truly a place to remember.

Chief Joseph Days

Harley Tucker helped launch the first Chief Joseph Days in 1946. The first year the Rodeo was held on the East Moraine of Wallowa Lake, and the skeleton of that first arena still stands today. The Rodeo grew from its modest beginnings to one of the largest community rodeos and festivals in the northwest.

As Chief Joseph Days evolved over the years, it outgrew its initial setting, and today is held at the Harley Tucker Memorial Arena in Joseph. During Chief Joseph Days the tiny hamlet of Joseph swells from its usual 1,000 residents to nearly ten times that.

Chief Joseph Days Grand Parade

The crowds come for an authentic experience of the American West, still alive today. Many families have been coming for decades, and many people each year travel from far and wide – including the East Coast and foreign countries – to enjoy the celebration.

When he died in 1960, Tucker was one of the nation’s largest stock contractors, providing stock and producing over 25 northwest rodeos each year. Tucker was inducted into the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City in 1997, the St. Paul Rodeo Hall of Fame in 1999, and the Pendleton Round-Up Hall of Fame in 1980.

Maxville Heritage Center

“Maxville” was the railroad logging town that existed about 15 miles north of Wallowa, Oregon. The emergence of the Maxville Project reflects the local community’s deep appreciation for the preservation of its oral history, photographs, historical structures, and forested landscape.

The Maxville Heritage Interpretive Center serves as a platform to unify the multiple cultures through educational programs, exhibits, and events. The Maxville Heritage Interpretive Center seeks to gather, catalog, preserve, and interpret the rich history of the multicultural logging community of Maxville, Oregon as well as similar communities in the Pacific Northwest. Maxville itself operated until the early 1930s and was unique in that it included 50 or so African Americans and their families and was home to the only segregated school in Oregon. Previously, historic records only made small mention of these African Americans. In the last few years, the Maxville Heritage Project has fostered a reawakening of interest in this rich chapter of history through public lectures and school visits, an Elder-hostel lecture, AP articles and an OPB broadcast spotlighting this unique local history. With the groundswell of historic artifacts and stories emerging from descendants and those with relationships to people from Maxville, a large number of video, image, audio and textual digital files, and hard copy images have been collected.

Josephy Center for Arts and Culture ~ Also Home of the Annual Cowboy Poetry Gathering!

We welcome you to the Josephy Center for Arts and Culture – an inviting, friendly place where people of all ages come to take a class, hear a musician, enjoy art exhibits, meet local artists and immerse themselves in the rich legacy of Northeast Oregon’s culture and heritage.

Designed by an architect and built in 1983 as a bank, the Josephy center now provides studio space for formal and informal art instruction for all ages, space for working artists, conference facilities, rooms for meetings, videoconferencing capacity, and expansive exhibit space for art and cultural events.

Northeast Oregon has long been considered a region bursting in creative arts. References refer to Wallowa County (pop. 7,226) as “Oregon’s artist colony”. The county’s stunning natural resources, Old West ambiance and charming communities draw thousands of visitors each year for its art, scenic beauty and cultural offerings. Joseph itself is home to world-renowned bronze foundries, several art organizations and numerous artists.

Founded in mid 2012, development of the Josephy Center for Arts and Culture follows several years of planning efforts. Collaborators include local and regional artists, organizations, businesses and institutions engaged in the creative arts, cultural experience, and art education. A comprehensive feasibility study and business plan, funded by Meyer Memorial Trust, was completed in 2010.

The center serves as the heart of a regional effort to strengthen the northeast corner of Oregon as a dynamic place that celebrates its creative capital. Art and place making are at the heart of a concerted effort for economic development and community building.

Theater

RimRock Inn

Though the stage might look small in its setting under the vast expanse of Wallowa County skies and the rim of Joseph Creek Canyon, our outdoor “concert hall” is the place to be for concerts and other stage productions. Enjoy the music as you relax on the grass and soak in the light of countless stars!

Accommodations

RimRock Inn

Join us at the historic RimRock Inn and experience our brand of camping and overnight accommodations. Encounter the unforgettable in lodging right on the edge of Joseph Creek Canyon, Wallowa County, Oregon in our newly outfitted, rustically elegant tipis and wall tents. This is where rough meets romantic, grit meets glamour, and canyon meets classy!

GET OFF THE GRID (and we mean REALLY off the grid) experiencing unsurpassed beauty and history where Chief Joseph and his band of Nez Perce walked.

LIVE LIFE RURALLY in tipis that have no electricity, phones, or TV, yet have all the comforts of home–just bring your toothbrush! Prefer to be inside? We also offer Lodge accommodations.

WALK, HIKE OR BIKE the many rural roads and trails of Northeast Oregon where few have been!

EXPERIENCE THE EXTREME on a hike to the bottom of Joseph Creek Canyon–it’s not for sissies, but it’s worth the effort.

RELAX AND RENEW YOUR WONDER enjoying the tangy fragrance of sage and pine with the ever-changing canyon vistas at no extra charge!

SIP AND SAVOR the finest Northwest wines and micro brews anytime from our famous deck with breathtaking views.

DINE AND LINGER over a home-cooked, family-style meal where strangers become friends.

SOAK UP THE SUN and enjoy personalized, down home guest services with RimRock’s hosts. We pride ourselves in personal attention to each and every guest.

Restaurants

RimRock Inn

Our food philosophy is simple- fresh, local, and organic. We refer to it as, “going with the F.L.O.” Whenever possible we source and serve locally grown foods as well as the produce harvested from our very own gardens here at Rimrock.

DINNER BY RESERVATION ONLY

Don’t miss the opportunity to have dinner with us! Our scratch prepared meals are served in a laid back atmosphere. You can enjoy your dinner on the deck with spectacular views or in our beautiful dining room. We prepare a different entrée each evening, five days a week (Tuesday through Saturday).

DRINKS & SMALL BITES

Please feel free to join us between 12:00 PM and 3:00 PM any day of the week (no reservation necessary) for some of the best wines and microbrews in Northeast Oregon! We pride ourselves in sourcing fine wines that you won’t find elsewhere and that won’t break the bank! Along with our wine and extensive beverage menu, you can also order our scratch made tapas and small bites. Place your order at our historic bar and enjoy your food in our beautiful dining room or on our scenic deck.

If you are an overnight guest, be it in one of our authentic tipis, the Looking Glass Platform Stage, the Mustang Sally Bunkhouse, the Eagles Aerie Loft Apartment, or the Chief Joseph Suite, included with your stay is a delicious, expanded continental breakfast served buffet style.