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The Owyhee Canyonlands
The “Grand Canyon of Oregon” — a thousand-foot-deep river canyon system bigger than Yellowstone, and Jordan Valley is its front door.
Welcome
A real town on the edge of the wild
Jordan Valley is a working ranch town of about 150 people on US-95 in Oregon’s far southeastern corner — the last cafe, the last gas, and the last good night’s sleep before one of the wildest landscapes in America. Out the back door: the mile-deep world of the Owyhee Canyonlands, the golden spires of Leslie Gulch, lava fields young enough to look warm, and night skies with no equal in the lower 48.
The town itself is worth the stop: Oregon’s only Basque pelota fronton, a stone church raised by Irish and Basque settlers in 1914, and every May, the Big Loop Rodeo — buckaroo roping the way the Great Basin has always done it.
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The Owyhee country, from town
Everything below is a day trip — most of it under an hour from Main Street.
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Leslie Gulch
Honeycombed towers of golden volcanic tuff and the largest herd of California bighorn sheep in the country — 200-plus animals among the spires.
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Jordan Craters & Coffeepot Crater
A 27-square-mile lava field so young it looks like it cooled last week — walk the rim of Coffeepot Crater 30 minutes from town.
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Pillars of Rome
Hundred-foot walls of white clay rising from the desert like ruined temples — the formations that gave Rome, Oregon its name.
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Three Forks & the Hot Springs
Where three branches of the Owyhee meet in a remote canyon — with warm waterfalls and rock pools that feel like the edge of the known world.
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Dark-Sky Stargazing
The Owyhee is one of the largest pools of natural darkness left in the lower 48 — step outside town and the Milky Way casts shadows.
Events
Mark the calendar
Third full weekend in May, every year
Jordan Valley Big Loop Rodeo
The real thing — a 50-plus-year buckaroo tradition famous for big-loop roping, where ropers throw 20-foot loops from horseback the way Great Basin cow…
Where to Stay
Sleep in the middle of it
Two good options right in town put every canyon, crater, and trailhead within day-trip range.
RV Park & Campground
Sunny Ridge RV Park
Full-hookup RV sites and quiet high-desert camping right in Jordan Valley — the natural basecamp for Owyhee trips.
Motel
Basque Station Motel
A clean, friendly small-town motel on US-95 — simple rooms, easy parking, and a warm welcome after a long desert drive.
Trip Idea
Three days in the Owyhee
Lava fields at sunset, bighorn sheep at breakfast, a warm spring under the Milky Way. We put the perfect long weekend on one page.