On the last weekend of June 2008 the La Pine Senior Center Travel Club departed for the North East corner of Oregon for a weekend getaway to take a train ride, visit a winery and see the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center.
We stayed in Union, Oregon - 14 miles South of La Grande at The Historic Union Hotel. All the rooms have a theme based upon the surrounding area:
The Annie Oakley Suite - In honor of Gail Davis who portrayed Annie Oakley on TV. She stayed at the hotel during a stock show.
The Davis Bros. Suite - two brothers lived most of their life at the hotel. A condition of their inheritance was they could never marry.
The Clark Gable Room - rumour has it he fished in the Creek near by.
The Fireside Cafe & Lounge was an on site restaurant with great home cooking at a reasonable cost. We enjoyed eating in there on most evenings and Robb & Dave, the proprietors, were great hosts and ran the entire place all by themselves.
Whilst in Union, we particularly enjoyed the many traditional shops owned by some great people. Don't miss Aggie's worthwhile goods for the home & garden, Pat Neals & Lisa Lively, Proprietary Divas and right next door to the hotel a cafe offering coffees and great fruit smoothies. The store is also filled with lovely items.
We also visited Union County Museum which was exhibiting the history of Cowboys - Then & Now. A real fascinating insight to how times have changed.
The Eagle Cap Excursion Train
Departing from Elgin on a 2.5 hour train ride into the Eagle Cap Wilderness designated a wild & scenic area - we travelled along the Grande Ronde & Wallow Rivers through rugged, roadless countryside.
Gilstrap Brothers Winery
In Cove, Oregon - Warren Gilstrap gave us a brief history on the winery and how his father started the winery after retiring from 35 years of flying for United Airlines. We tasted their White Merlot, 45 Magic-Syrah and he also announced that in September they will begin selling a Port "Passion Port".
Oregon Trail Interpretive Center
History of the Oregon Trail and we viewed the ruts from the wagon wheels. This center gives a great insight into the history of the trail and in depth details of the hard ache suffered and stories of life along the trail.
This is a great itinerary for a family reunion or just a family get a way. If you have a group or civic organization that would like retreat this also makes a perfect get away for a weekend break. The countryside is beautiful and La Grande, Union, Elgin and Cove are all within a 15 minute drive. The Oregon Trail Interpretive Center is 45 minutes south in Baker City.
Everybody we visited was friendly and very helpful to the group. I highly recommend this trip to anyone wanting to get away from the crowds and out into beautiful scenery.
Eagle Cap Excursion Train out of Elgin, Oregon
The Historic Union Hotel in Union, Oregon
Hot Lake Springs - Home to David Manuel Bronze Artist
Oregon Trail Interpretive Center in Baker City, Oregon
Gilstrap Brothers Winery in Cove, Oregon
My heart belongs to Oregon.