The Columbia Gorge Museum

The Columbia Gorge museum sits riverside of the Columbia River and through the century explores the formation and living life around it. There is much history here ranging from the American Indians, settlers, European explorers, immigrants, the lifestyle and hardships endured and more here at the museum.

There are many stories you can read about and information on periods during the Gorge's history. The Skamania County historical society collect, preserve and display all sorts of tools, trinkets and more from the time period all related to the Gorge and all involved. There are many generous donors as noted on many of the displays which is cool.

In the yard, there are old vehicles and construction equipment of the early days showing how supplies and timber were moved. They are worn and rusted but adds to its historical significance.

The museum is about 3 floors, the 2nd floor is small, but packed with information about the nature around the gorge. There are theaters that show short features of the environment about the gorge. Depending on how deep your fascination for this goes, you could spend about 2 hours here a bit more if you read and examine all the displays.

This museum is a perfect field trip for a school or parents looking to educate their youngsters about the history of the area. Even then, if you enjoy Pacific Northwest history, definitely add this to your list of museums to visit.

Went for my birthday and loved it! A great self guided museum. Beautiful displays, appreciative story telling, and impressive design. Front desk was kind and the gift shop was cute!

This museum is a must if your into learning the local heritage of the George, it has interesting exhibits that display many different cultural influences of the area. The 2 short films are full of interesting facts and included in admission. Gift shop has some local crafts for sell. Would return again

A fascinating interpretive center in a breathtaking locale. Admission is $10 for adults, $6 for children, and it's worth the price. It opened in 1997, and has aged remarkably well. There are plenty of exhibits for the kids, like a lumber mill's steam engine. The Native American and geological history of the Columbia River Gorge are engrossingly portrayed. For something indoors, you'd want to spend hours.

Appropriately, it has enormous windows so you can take in the views of the Gorge. The documentary videos are OK, but they have an amazing array of artifacts, signs, exhibits- but you're there for the gorgeous vistas.

It fits in with the scenery, and a great introduction to the history&geology of the Pacific Northwest treasure that is the Columbia River Gorge.

We chose the interpretive center for our wedding venue because it is beautiful, spacious, and affordable. But the real value was with Rob and the rest of the staff at the museum. They worked with us with graciousness, flexibility, and understanding, and are just great people! Many of our guests actually commented about how genuine and friendly everyone was. There are a lot of moving pieces that need to come together for a wedding and they exceeded my expectations in every way. Thank you again all, you know who you all are! We will always be grateful for your help in creating what truly turned out to be a remarkable event! Cheers

One of the only decent museums I've seen since moving to the PNW. Fairly priced, tons of great artifacts and quotes from primary sources, great signage, two theaters with different documentary videos, etc. It interprets the history of the Columbia River Gorge excellently and tastefully. They are even expanding (something I have never seen in the PNW - a museum that is growing!) by adding an exhibit on the Eagle Creek Fire from a year ago. Upstairs there is a fantastic exhibit telling the stories of Skamania County locals, which I very much appreciated.
The only reason I'm not giving it five stars is because the machinery outside is underwhelming. I was especially disappointed to not actually be able to go inside the train car. Apparently they are accepting donations to restore it though.
Well done, Columbia Gorge Interp Center Museum!

So impressed with this museum that covers 15,000 years of history. It was a great follow up to the Columbia Gorge brunch cruise we had just been on. There are some hands-on exhibits and you'll want to ask the staff to run the steam engine that provided power for the entire lumber mill. It's worth the $10 entry fee!

Great museum with some very cool pieces of history. Don't miss the photo album of Mount St Helens after the explosion on the stair case.

As a Portlander on a honeymoon, we made a stop here! Very informative and MANY artifacts to view! We'll be bringing out of town guests next time!

This is a small museum, but turned out to be an informative way to spend a couple of hours. Make sure though, that you snag one of the docents to explain and have them run the big log cutter there.