Oregon’s Big Country Beckons in Burns

When Harney County was sliced out of the Eastern Oregon high desert, it became the ninth largest county in America. Bigger than some states, only about 7,000 people call Harney County home and most of them live in Burns or its neighbor Hines. This is ranching and timber country the likes of which namesake Scottish poet Robert Burns never imagined.

Planning a visit? Stay at Burns RV Park.

North of town, the Malheur National Forest boasts the largest tracts of Ponderosa pine in the nation. Malheur National Wildlife Refuge to the south collects much of the water of the Harney Basin, attracting over 320 bird species and the rare redband trout for fishermen.

Further south is Steens Mountain, almost 10,000 feet high with an east face composed of basalt rock piled up from millions of years of volcanic activity. This recreational mecca includes a series of hot springs scattered around the 50-mile long mountain.

Early travelers to Steens Mountain found a meal and a bed in the Frenchglen Hotel that is now operated as an Oregon state park. More recently the challenging terrain—some canyons drop more than one mile—has hosted the nationally famous Steens Mountain Running Camp.