To really understand an area you have to know its past. Luckily, visitors seeing Mt. Bachelor for the first time have their pick of museums to choose from.

The High Desert Museum (541-382-4754; http://www.highdesertmuseum.org) can be found on Highway 97, north of Sunriver Resort and just 3.5 miles south of Bend. Open daily, this highly-regarded museum displays artwork, sculpture and many exhibits showing life in Oregon's High Desert. Live animal presentations feature river otter, porcupine and birds of prey, plus small and rarely-seen animals. Their Homestead Ranch and Native Encampment exhibits include visits from "settlers" to re-enact Plateau Indian and frontier life.

The 27,000-square-foot Museum at Warm Springs (541-553-3331; http://www.warmsprings.biz/museum) is about a two-hour drive north of Bend, along the banks of a tributary of the Deschutes River. This museum houses the country's largest collection of aboriginal artifacts from a single tribe. Traditional singing and drumming representative of each of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs are also featured.