Recreation opportunities in the Heppner vicinity are varied and abundant, thanks to cooperative weather.  And engaging activities or special events, almost on a monthly basis, provide visitors and residents’ entertainment, education, and enjoyment.

Weather is not important to the historical Morrow County Courthouse tour, and a visit to the Morrow County Museum or the Agricultural collection is a fine addition to any day.  Bargain Hunters will appreciate nearby Ione and Lexington’s yearly community “garage” sales.  Ione, which also holds a July 4^th blues Festival, adds an auction to its event, and the Heppner Booster Club and the St. Patrick’s Day Committee also hold auctions on other calendar dates.  The nearby “ghost town: of Hardman sponsors an oyster feed each year, attended by faithful diners from many miles away.  The “Motocross races accompany a “Wee Bit O’Ireland” events in Heppner each March.  In July, the resident’s “Celebrate Heppner,” and August brings the Morrow County Fair and Oregon Trail Pro-Rodeo .

Heppner’s location, in the Blue Mountains’ foothills, amid acres of agricultural land surrounded by back roads and intersecting streams, invites horseback riding; hiking; dirt bike and ATV riding; bicycling around town, in the St. Jude’s ride or Columbia Plateau Stage Race, or on the many suitable roads to other Eastern Oregon locations; motorcycling; fishing, may be in the yearly derby; water skiing or jet skiing in the reservoir; walking, jogging, or running around town or in the organized events.  A swim in the local pool or golf on the nine-hole course promises to refresh, and tennis courts, basketball courts, and ball fields are available for some rigorous workouts.  Picnicking is a pleasure, whether in the city park or in the mountains.  The mountains also offer great huckleberry hunting and mushroom hunting.  Snowmobilers delight in the Winter Mountains, and some ice-skating and ice fishing might even be feasible.  Cross-country skiing is also popular here.  Heppner is the place for “all seasons.”