Overview | Location | Cost | Time | Planning | Experience + Ratings Trip Extras | Missed Opportunities
Overview
If you are a rockhound, love natural history or Smithsonian type museums. You will love this unassuming stop. Don't miss judge a book by its cover because this is a diamond in the rough pun intended!
"The Rice Museum of Rocks and Minerals houses a world-class collection recognized as the finest in the Pacific Northwest and one of the best in the nation. Located just west of Portland, Oregon, in Hillsboro, the Museum showcases not only fine rocks and minerals, but also fossils, meteorites, lapidary art, and gemstones from both the Pacific Northwest and all around the world."
This stop was a spur of the moment stop with our big Pike Place Market, Tillamook, Thunderegg, Hood River adventure!
Location
26385 NW Groveland Dr, Hillsboro, OR 97124
Cost
For us:
$12 per adult general admissions
$24 total + gas
Worth every penny!
Time Commitment
We spent about an hour and half in the museum but that is only because it was a spur of the moment find and we were headed to our next spot before dark. We would have gladly spend another hour enjoying everything in the museum.
Planning
They are closed on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. You can make reservations on their website. We were able to just stop in on the Saturday afternoon of Labor Day weekend without any crowds or issues.
The Rice Northwest Museum Experience:
Ross's Rating: 15/10
Crystal's Rating: 10/10
From Ross (the Rockhound): This is an amazing museum. The museum is very well curated with beautiful gem and mineral specimens. The museum is nothing short of incredible. There are two floors filled to the brim in one building and another dedicated specifically to gems and minerals of the Northwest. I enjoyed the main gallery the most with the over 4,000 of the highest quality specimens from all over the world. I even loved some of the display cases and will be finding some for my own collection!
From Crystal (the Meat Nerd): I am far from a rockhound but even I enjoyed this stop immensely. Ross and I were both tired on the drive when I just happen to see it on one of the blue attraction signs. We exited and had very low expectations driving up to the Museum. Little did we know how spectacular this stop would end up being. The displays are incredible and I loved how kid friendly they have made the place. They offer coloring pages, seek and find in the museum sheets and a rock pile for the kiddos. Probably one of the coolest parts to me was the Rainbow Room with UV lights showing the the fluorescing minerals under different wavelengths.
Trip Extras + Supporting Local
We are not sure because this stop itself was a trip extra for us! Let us know if you have any other Hillsboro/Portland adventure suggestions!
Missed Opportunities:
Exploring Portland. Specifically Blue Star Donuts.