Welcome to the heart and soul of Southern Oregon! Find your path to your Klam-cation! As all roads in Klamath County lead to the Klamath Basin.
Thanksgiving Week November 27th-30th
Spend Thanksgiving weekend surrounded by the scenic beauty and cozy charm of Klamath County! Embrace the warmth of a hometown holiday with activities that’ll keep the whole family entertained. Start with seasonal outdoor adventures, enjoy a traditional feast, shopping, and festive fun. Whether you’re cozying up in a cabin, exploring snowy trails, or indulging in local flavors, Klamath County offers countless ways to make Thanksgiving unforgettable. From mountain lodges to lakefront cabins to a relaxing resort, and from snowy adventures to warm campfire gatherings, every path here leads to holiday cheer.
Kick off your Thanksgiving with the magical storytelling of The Tale of The Princess Kaguya on the big screen! Showing Thanksgiving Eve at Pelican Cinema as part of Studio Ghibli Fest 2024, this enchanting film brings timeless beauty and adventure to your holiday week. Don’t miss it!
On Saturday, November 23, 2024, The Ross Ragland will celebrate 85 years of the building's history! The Esquire Theater opened on November 30, 1940, with the movie "The Westerner". To kick off their yearlong celebration, a special showing will be on the big screen! An exhibit featuring artifacts from the Esquire Theater will be on display in the lobby. Dana Wirth will also be performing to help celebrate in style! This is a FREE event, so don't forget to reserve your seats today!
November 27th, 2024
Escape to the serene beauty of Running Y Resort for a Thanksgiving weekend for a lifetime! Nestled in the heart of Klamath County, this luxurious resort is the perfect holiday retreat, offering complimentary tickets for two to their lavish Thanksgiving Buffet. Enjoy the resort's incredible amenities, including scenic horseback riding trails, a world-class golf course, and a rejuvenating spa. Make cherished holiday memories with loved ones as you glide across the ice skating rink, then cozy up in beautifully appointed accommodations. At Running Y, Thanksgiving feels like a getaway tailored just for you!
This Thanksgiving, trade the bustle for a serene cabin stay in Klamath County! Unwind at Lake of the Woods, Rocky Point Resort, or Crystal Creek Mountain Lodge, where adventure and relaxation await. Spend your days fishing, kayaking, or paddling on tranquil waters, and your evenings by the campfire with s’mores in hand. Experience the magic of a holiday weekend surrounded by nature’s beauty!
Celebrate Thanksgiving surrounded by the beauty of North Klamath County! Stay cozy in a lodge at Odell Lake Lodge & Resort, Lonesome Duck on the Williamson River, or Red Cone Lodge Bed & Breakfast by Crescent Lake, complete with a hot tub to unwind after a day of winter fun. With stunning views and a peaceful retreat, it’s the perfect spot for a holiday getaway!
Make your Thanksgiving memorable in Klamath Falls, with affordable lodging options for every budget—from KOA cabins to hotels like Fairfield, Shilo Inn, Days Inn, and Microtel Inn & Suites. While you’re here, explore charming downtown boutiques, shop for unique treasures, and enjoy a laid-back holiday atmosphere perfect for relaxing and unwinding!
November 28th, 2024
This Thanksgiving, treat yourself to an unforgettable dining experience at the scenic Running Y Resort. Surrounded by breathtaking views and warm holiday ambiance, the Thanksgiving Buffet offers a luxurious spread of seasonal favorites that will delight every palate. From traditional roast turkey and all the classic trimmings to chef-inspired sides and delectable desserts, this feast is the perfect way to celebrate with family and friends.
For $65 per adult and $30 per child, indulge in the flavors of fall while overlooking the serene beauty of Klamath County. With seating times available at 2, 3, and 4 PM, it’s easy to find the perfect time to gather around the table. Reservations are required, so secure your spot today and make this Thanksgiving a cozy, delicious retreat at Running Y Resort.
September 29th, 2024
Indulge in pure relaxation this Thanksgiving with a rejuvenating spa day (or two!) at Running Y Resort, while the rest of the family explores Winter Wonderland adventures. For a memorable group experience, gather everyone for a scenic horseback ride through the resort’s stunning rolling acres, where breathtaking views and fresh mountain air make every moment unforgettable. Whether it’s unwinding solo or creating holiday memories together, Running Y Resort has something special for everyone this Thanksgiving.
This Black Friday, trade shopping lines for the snowy trails of Annie Creek Sno-Park! Enjoy cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and sledding in the serene Fremont-Winema National Forest. Then, head to East Klamath County for fishing, kayaking, and a cozy campfire at Rocky Point or Upper Klamath Lake. Embrace an adventure-filled day surrounded by nature’s beauty!
Ditch the crowds and enjoy a unique adventure at Train Mountain Railroad in Chiloquin, home to the world’s longest miniature railroad with over 36 miles of scenic track through lush landscapes. After exploring the detailed train models, rent an e-bike from Zach’s Bikes in Klamath Falls to explore Collier Memorial State Park. Ride through forested trails, visit the Logging Museum, and discover historic logging equipment and cabins for a day of history, nature, and outdoor fun!
Skip the mall and discover Klamath Falls’ best treasures! Start your day exploring unique boutiques, thrift shops, and antique finds at places like Woodsy Kitchen, Rare Bird, Keeper’s Corner, and Everybody’s Vintage. Afterward, enjoy a delicious dinner at local favorites like Thai Orchid Café or Rooster’s Steak and Chop House. End the night with drinks at Basin Martini Bar, Common Block Brewing, or Volcanic Winery, then challenge family members to pool at Black Dog Billiards. This Black Friday, experience a local adventure full of charm, flavor, and fun!
September 30th-31st, 2024
Experience a winter escape in Klamath County, where sunny skies meet snowy adventures! With over 300 days of sunshine annually, it’s the perfect place to enjoy the best of winter’s beauty. Information can be found here on rental equipment for snowy fun!
Discover Crater Lake National Park transformed into a winter wonderland. Snowshoe or cross-country ski along the scenic Rim Drive with breathtaking views of the lake’s deep blue waters. Join a ranger-guided snowshoe walk to learn about the park’s unique winter ecosystem and enjoy the serene beauty of snow-covered landscapes.The memories and pictures will be priceless.Winter guide to visiting Crater Lake in the winter.
Add some extra fun to your trip with a visit to Annie Creek Sno-Park, where you can enjoy cross-country skiing, sledding, and snowshoeing on snowy trails surrounded by towering pines. It's an ideal spot to dive into Klamath’s outdoor magic.
Glide across the open-air Bill Collier Community Ice Arena, set amidst forested hills in Klamath Falls. Whether you're a pro skater or just starting out, it’s a winter activity for all ages. Be sure to call the arena for open skate days and time! (Subject to Reopening).
Klamath County’s blend of sunshine and snow offers the ultimate setting for a memorable winter vacation. From Crater Lake’s stunning vistas to the family-friendly fun at Annie Creek Sno-Park, this winter wonderland awaits you!
Klamath County and the surrounding region—which includes a lot of beautiful remote areas, far from the hustle and bustle of big cities—lays claim to some remarkable history. Visitors here can delve into some fascinating, sometimes quirky, hyper-local cultural heritage, and also historical happenings that are linked directly to national—and global—events.
Among the most poignant of Klamath County’s historical sites is the Mitchell Monument, some 65 miles northeast of Klamath Falls and 10 miles outside of the small town of Bly. It’s one of a number of regional locations tying this sprawling and quiet corner of the Northwest to the drama and ravages of the Second World War.
A stone marker with a bronze plaque along Forest Road 34 in the Fremont-Winema National Forest serves as the centerpiece of the Mitchell Monument, dedicated in 1950 to memorialize the only World War II casualties from enemy action that occurred on the U.S. mainland.
The tragedy took place on the morning of May 5, 1945, during the final stretch of the War. Reverend Archie Mitchell and his pregnant wife, Elsie, came here to Leonard Creek on the flanks of Gearhart Mountain in the company of five Sunday-school students for a picnic. The tranquil scene turned tragic in moments.
As Archie—the sole survivor of the incident—told it (as recorded by the Oregon Encyclopedia), “As I got out of the car to bring the lunch, the others were not far away and called to me that they had found something that looked like a balloon. I heard of Japanese balloons so I shouted a warning not to touch it. But just then there was a big explosion. Iran up there—and they were all dead.”
One of the children had indeed triggered one of the more unique weapons employed during World War II: a Japanese balloon bomb, or fugo (“wind ship”).Japanese meteorologists had early on identified the great, high-altitude westerly airflow of the jet stream, and the country’s military conceived of taking advantage of it to attack the North American mainland. Roughly33-foot-diameter balloons rigged with multiple bombs and an altitude-control device were launched from Japan, lofted into the jet stream, and carried across the Pacific on roughly 70-hour journeys. Slowly cooling at altitudes of 30,000to 40,000 feet or so, these fugos were designed to gradually descend and explode on North American soil: detonations intended to spark wildfires—and terror.
Japan released better than 9,000 balloon bombs from November 1944 to April1945, but their effectiveness was hampered by equipment malfunction and the seasonal dampness of the forests they fell upon. The U.S. government became aware of the program but kept a lid on the information to avoid panicking the public and to sow doubt among the Japanese military, which did indeed conclude the program was a failure and discontinued it.
Many balloon bombs were shot down, and undetonated ones were safely removed. The Mitchell party marked the only casualties inflicted by a fugo in North America: Elsie Mitchell (26), Jay Gifford (13), Edward Engen (13), Dick Patzke (14), Joan Patzke (13), and Sherman Shoemaker (11) .
Besides the plaque, the Mitchell Monument includes a ponderosa pine damaged by the explosion: the so-called “Shrapnel Tree,” which stands as a living testament to this local tragedy of the Second World War.
You can learn more about balloon bombs—and see fragments of that detonated on Gearhart Mountain as well as another recovered from Pelican Butte—at the Klamath County Museum.
The Tule Lake Segregation Center
Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 in February 1942, thereby establishing a program of excluding and incarcerating persons of Japanese descent in the U.S. This resulted in the establishment of War Relocation Authority (WRA) internment camps that, over the course of their existence, housed some 120,000 individuals of Japanese ancestry: the majority of them American citizens.
The largest and longest-lasting of the 10 WRA camps was located in Northern California at Tule Lake. The site of the Tule Lake Segregation Center and the associated Camp Tulelake—opened in the 1930s as a Civilian Conservation Corps and converted into a prison camp during the Second World War—now fall within Tule Lake National Monument.
The history of the Tule Lake concentration camp—which at its peak held 18,789 incarcerees, and which, operating from May 26, 1942, to March 28, 1946,housed nearly 30,000 in total—is a dark and troubled one, which involved segregating those incarcerated based on their answers to “loyalty questions” and, ultimately, the institution of martial law. You can learn more about it at the websites of the TuleLake Committee and TuleLake National Monument.
Among the Japanese-Americans incarcerated at Tule Lake was Yuzuru “John” Takeshita, who decades later learned about the balloon-bomb tragedy near Bly. He ended up connecting with a number of Japanese women who, as school children, had been forced to make paper for the fugos. Informed by Takeshita of the Bly-area deaths in 1945, these women crafted one thousand origami cranes for the affected families and ended up visiting the site of the Mitchell Monument in the 1990s. That’s part of the story told in the well-awarded documentary On Paper Wings, directed by the Portland-based filmmaker Ilana Sol.
The challenging histories of the Mitchell Monument and the Tule Lake Segregation Center are only some of the interwoven, multicultural sagas that build our heritage here in Klamath County. Indulge in some illuminating time travel via our region’s numerous self-guided tours, from downtown Klamath Falls to Lava Beds National Monument.
These tour routes include The Modoc War: A Homeland Lost, which explores the resistance of Kintpuash (“Captain Jack”) and his Modoc band to being forcibly removed to the Klamath Reservation, which famously partly played out amid the rough lava flows of the Medicine Lake Volcano.
Understanding local history helps deepen one’s sense of place. Consider tapping into Klamath County’s human backstories on your next getaway here, from the historic architecture and museum exhibits of Klamath Falls to the pinewoods, buttelands, and lava fields farther afield.
Klamath's museums are not just repositories of the past; they are vibrant centers where history is brought to life. These institutions offer a panoramic view of diverse and significant histories, ranging from natural and cultural to local and global narratives. They serve as gateways to understanding the complex tapestry of events and cultures that have shaped the region. From the intricate details of Native American history to the impactful stories of WWII, each museum in Klamath is a unique chapter in the larger story of human resilience and creativity.