Rocky Reach Dam on the Columbia River seen from the Discovery Center grounds north of Wenatchee

Rocky Reach Discovery Center

Photo: Mariko Nicoletti via Google Maps

The Rocky Reach Discovery Center sits beside Rocky Reach Dam on the Columbia River, about 7 miles north of Wenatchee on State Highway 97A. Run by Chelan County PUD, it is a hands on museum about the river, the salmon that travel it, the people who have lived along it, and the hydropower the dam produces.

It is also where much of the old Museum of the Columbia lives on. That museum, housed inside the dam’s powerhouse, closed permanently in 2019, and many of its historic pieces moved into the remodeled Discovery Center, which reopened in August 2021 after a $7.7 million renovation. Add the fish viewing windows and the landscaped park outside, and it makes an easy, rewarding stop on a drive up the river.

What You’ll See

  • Fish viewing windows: expanded windows on the fish ladder give you an eye to eye view of salmon and steelhead heading upriver. The remodel widened the window so it works better for kids and wheelchair users.
  • The salmon mobile: a 14 foot mobile of more than 100 salmon sculptures that spans two floors of the building.
  • River and Native history: exhibits cover Columbia River history and the region’s first peoples, and pieces carried over from the old museum include a restored tule house and an antique Native canoe that had to be crated and lowered through the skylight during the remodel.
  • Hands on hydropower: a steamboat simulator, a turbine cranking station and an augmented reality app that lets you swim with the salmon, fly a drone over the dam or ride through a turbine as a water molecule.

The Story Behind It

Construction on Rocky Reach Dam began in 1956, and the original visitor center opened in 1962. For decades the Museum of the Columbia occupied space inside the powerhouse, while the visitor center showed films about the river. In November 2019 Chelan County PUD closed the visitor area for a full remodel. Some of the old museum’s exhibits moved into the new Discovery Center, others went to the Wenatchee Valley Museum and Cultural Center, and the rest were archived.

The rebuilt center opened on August 25, 2021, with a redesigned layout, new plumbing, bigger fish viewing windows and a second story deck with balcony seating that looks out over the dam and the river. Its exhibits are built around science, technology, engineering and math, and the PUD uses it for student programs such as summer science camps. The dam itself has a place in fish history too: according to the National Hydropower Association, it was the first dam in the United States to install a juvenile fish bypass system.

Tips for Your Visit

  • The Discovery Center is open year round; check the Chelan PUD page for current days and hours before you drive out.
  • Plan time for Rocky Reach Park next door, with 17 acres of lawns and gardens, playground equipment, picnic shelters, an arboretum, a turbine exhibit and horseshoe pits.
  • Salmon runs are seasonal. One local guide suggests May and August for Chinook, July for sockeye and September for steelhead at the viewing windows.
  • Chelan PUD holds its Salmon Festival at Rocky Reach each September, a good time to visit with kids.
  • A café inside the center serves light meals on some days; check the PUD page if you plan to eat there.

Plan Your Visit

Address: 5000 State Hwy 97A, Wenatchee, WA 98801
Phone: 509.663.7522
Website: chelanpud.org
Hours and admission: Check the museum website for current days, hours, and admission before you visit.
Directions: View on Google Maps

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