Learning Center

What was it like to pilot a river boat on the Columbia River in the late 1800's? You don’t have to get your feet wet to find out. Step into the pilot house of the sternwheeler, Columbia, wrap your hands around the spokes of the six foot pilot wheel and steer your course up the wild, untamed river.

Chelan County Public Utility District welcomes you to one of the most exciting and innovative interpretive museums in the West, the Rocky Reach Museum of the Columbia located on the fourth floor of the Rocky Reach Dam powerhouse. It shows the West as it really was—settlers and Native Americans, steam boaters, lumbermen, railroaders in life-size photos. Stand inches away from a historical tramway reconstructed from original parts.

Through the use of dramatic lighting and unusual display techniques, you become part of this historical past. The Museum of the Columbia may be the closest you will ever come to a trip in a time machine—back into the pioneer history of our region and beyond.

If you should wish to go back in time beyond the pioneer era, step over to a reconstructed archaeological dig and see what primitive man left behind that tells us a story about him. Another part of "his story" is told in the ancient pictograph rock paintings on display nearby.

Its fun, it's exciting, and you can make it last as long or short a time as your imagination or your own time will let you.

The Museum of the Columbia, an exciting learning experience, is one of several visitor attractions at Rocky Reach Dam.