Blue Mountain Scenic Byway
Oregon National Historic Trail, OR

The Historic Columbia River Highway follows the same route as the Oregon Trail.

The 2,170-mile Oregon Trail was a crude network of rutted traces from the Missouri River to the Willamette River that was used by nearly 400,000 people. The Trail evokes an instant image of this continent's settlement.

Congress designated the Oregon National Historic Trail in 1978. Today the trail corridor contains some 300 miles of discernible ruts and 125 historic sites.

When travelers reached The Dalles, before the opening of the Barlow Road in 1846, they had no choice but to build rafts and float down the treacherous Columbia.

At the Gorge Discovery Center in The Dalles, there is a living history exhibit during summer weekends that encourages you to make your own "decision at The Dalles" whether to take the Barlow Road or the Columbia River.