Things to Do in Keizer

Embrace Oregon’s guides spotlight the charms of local businesses as they lead visitors through sightseeing and wine tours of the picturesque historic region. Jaunts through farmlands and shopping districts entice equestrian or antique enthusiasts, whereas nature lovers bloom with enthusiasm at seasonal events such as the Woodburn Tulip Festival. Visits to the Timberline Lodge and Chitwood covered bridge preserve a rich cultural heritage more easily than freezing Lewis and Clark in carbonite. Embrace Oregon’s online magazine provides additional information for travelers seeking spots to dine, sleep, and explore.

The acrobatic arm of the River Road Park and Recreation District, Gymnastics Northwest offers classes and parties for tumblers aged 18 months to 16 years. Reflex beams, rings, a pommel horse, and an in-ground trampoline await first timers and astronauts-in-training for weekly classes and events. Open-gym sessions run on Fridays for acrobats up to age 8, and Action Nights see junior jumpers aged 6–12 bound on the spring floor and feed the vaulting horse every third Saturday of the month.

Since 1990, Kandice Champion's expert tutelage has propelled horses into being victorious in dressage, hunt seat, and Western show rings. Champion Training Center's expansive facility accommodates participants of all ages and skill sets as they enrich their riding prowess atop trained school horses during daytime, evening, and weekend sessions led by Kandice and her squad of qualified teachers. In addition to lessons, Champion Training Center supplies devoted equestrians with horses for sale and equips riders with new and used accoutrements, including saddles, boots, and equine tiaras.

The fifth-annual Oregon Brews and BBQs festival floods McMinnville’s Granary District with frothy craft beers and the smoky scent of barbecue. With a souvenir beer glass and beer tokens in hand, guests can sample 50 craft beers from 22 breweries, including Block 15, Golden Valley Brewery, and Raccoon Lodge. The hoppy flavors complement tender barbecued meats, many of which grill masters have slow cooked throughout the night by using low heat and a boogie-man-repellent seasoning. Live musicians punctuate the air with such acts as The Jake Blair Band, which blends wailing slide guitar with gravely vocals and harmonica for a blues buffet. Audiences can dance along, check out the jewelry and art from local vendors, or explore the kids' zone. This year, proceeds from the festival will benefit the Willamette Valley Cancer Foundation and the GhanaHope Foundation.

Listed in the National Registry of Historic Places, the McDonald Theatre has enjoyed a long, strange history since its establishment in 1925. Originally a community playhouse equipped with both a stage and a screen, the theater found new life in the 1950s when One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest author and psychedelic pioneer Ken Kesey began presenting free cartoons there every Saturday morning. The McDonald spent the next six or so decades as a movie house exclusively, but in 2001, the Kesey family returned, producing concerts and community events under the theater’s enormous proscenium arch. Kesey Enterprises finally purchased the time-weighted stage in 2009, and today the building hosts events ranging from high-school proms to reggae concerts to plumbing-fixture lifting contests.