Goldendale Observatory State Park

"I went for one of there scheduled shows. It was raining and we had the dome closed for viewing, which should have been heartbreaking, but they made up for it for sure. I felt like a kid being excited about space for the first time again (I know sounds cheesy). He explained space and almost all aspects in a way even beginners can understand! I will 100% be frequenting this place."

"I saw Jupiter! It was amazing. If you want to see cool stuff in the sky, definitely go. If you know stuff about space, even better. My husband and I felt like the dumb kids in class during most of the presentation because we know next to nothing. It was way over our heads. But we got to see Jupiter, Orion, and the Andromeda galaxy. So that was cool"

"Wow! What a cool experience! The ranger was extremely knowledgeable. We got to see Saturn and Jupiter, so neat! Bring a warm jacket at night, restrooms available, you can purchase discover passes and merchandise at the front desk, make reservations on-line for admission, be careful if you are elderly and/or with mobility issues, as you will be walking in the dark. You have to pay for parking with the discover pass, but museum admission is free with on-line reservations. Can’t wait to go back, again!"

"We've done the day and evening tour two years in a row now. It's great if you have a little kids who are big into astronomy. Important to know: Bring warm clothes. I don't care if it's been 90 degrees all day, you will be standing outside for much of the tour and even the showroom inside can get chilly during the day. The evening show can be rough in the summer if your kids aren't used to staying up late. It doesn't get dark until well after 10pm. Read their website very carefully. They give you all the information you need to know for the visit. Parking fees, when to visit etc. The tour guides are very knowledgeable and outgoing but they are blunt. I appreciate it when it comes to leading large groups of people but some may not be prepared for it. The city lights are too bright for a true dark sky experience but that's not the observatory's fault. The park is very beautiful and I would highly recommend adding it to your Columbia Gorge itinerary."

"Our first time to the Observatory and it was great. The evening show started at 9 pm and went until midnight. The rangers provided an amazing wealth of information about the night sky. There is an amazing collection of telescopes that are focused on different objects that everyone can look through to see these different objects. It's definitely worth a stop. You'll need to get a free ticket/reservation ahead of time and a day or annual Discover pass, which could be purchased at the Observatory."