Klamath Falls

Klamath Falls was the first place I ever visited in Oregon. At 5 a.m. one New Year's Day, my friend and I tumbled off the Amtrak train from San Francisco and made our way to a cheap downtown motel. We'd planned the trip using a map of the U.S. the size of a placemat, so we thought we were situated a sturdy hike, or perhaps a cheap cab ride, away from Crater Lake National Park. But Crater Lake is about an hour to the north (K Falls makes an excellent base if you have a car), so we spent that trip exploring K Falls' limited downtown attractions. If you're exploring the town, be sure to visit the Favell Museum, a fascinating mix of ...

Klamath Falls was the first place I ever visited in Oregon. At 5 a.m. one New Year's Day, my friend and I tumbled off the Amtrak train from San Francisco and made our way to a cheap downtown motel. We'd planned the trip using a map of the U.S. the size of a placemat, so we thought we were situated a sturdy hike, or perhaps a cheap cab ride, away from Crater Lake National Park. But Crater Lake is about an hour to the north (K Falls makes an excellent base if you have a car), so we spent that trip exploring K Falls' limited downtown attractions. If you're exploring the town, be sure to visit the Favell Museum, a fascinating mix of Native American artifacts, contemporary Western art (think lots of bronzes), and miniature firearms. But the real attraction here is the outdoors: the huge lakes and wetlands of the Klamath Basin have some of the West's best birdwatching opportunities and a ranger-led snowshoe or ski tour at Crater Lake (snowed in much of the year) is a great way to really see a tiny slice of the park.

About the Expert

Judy Jewell and W.C. McRae are frequent collaborators: together they have written Moon Handbooks to Montana, Utah, and Zion-Bryce and updated the Moon Handbooks to Oregon and Coastal Oregon. Judy wrote the Compass American Guide to Oregon.