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Eastern Oregon is a world away from the lush, green coast and Willamette Valley. Perhaps nothing proves that better than the steep and jaring Owyhee Canyonlands. Also stretching into Idaho and Nevada, it is among the longest such systems in the country and, according to conservationists, the "largest expanse of unprotected wildlands in the American West." It is also home to the country's largest herd of California bighorn sheep, among other wildlife.
Interestingly, its name comes from a group of Native Hawaiian fur trappers of the Canadian North West Company who disappeared in the region. Despite a lack of protection, it has remained largely untouched since then, with only one highway passing through the region today. The largest man-made impact has been the construction of the Owyhee Dam in Nevada, which caused salmon to disappear from the rivers. Although the canyonlands in Idaho have been protected since 2009, the majority in Oregon still has no official park or wilderness designation.
