Copper Belt Winery: Beauty and Solitude Outside of Baker City

Our first trip in the Nash was sublime!

June 10, 2024, Eastern Oregon

It was our first ever trip in our new-to-us Nash travel Trailer staying with Harvest Hosts and I was predisposed to love it. We'd signed up for unlimited access to farms, breweries, wineries, and attractions across North America. It looked to be a great way to explore new places and try new things. I knew we'd love it! I'm from a ranching family and since it's passed out of my family, I miss being able to sit and soak-in the sights, sounds, and smells of remote rural places. I love meeting new people and seeing new places too.

Our first trip in the Nash would be in the Northwest. We didn't have a time limit, no firm destination (except that it couldn't be too far from Boise) for our shakedown cruise. Copper Belt Winery, 20 miles outside Baker City, Oregon was far and close enough. You have to want to be there to get there. I did. The Professor had his doubts, but I cajoled and he relented. Usually, he's not sorry for listening. Turns out he wasn't this time either.

We had a hard time getting on the road in Boise. Since it was our initial shakedown cruise in the trailer we kept thinking of things we needed to do so it was noon when we finally left and 4:30 pm when we rolled down the dusty driveway of Copper Belt Wines. Daylight lingered though so, it wasn't a problem and the place was worth it. The desert has a way of filling the soul and Copper Belt, the glass.

"Let's do it! It's a winery way out in the middle of nowhere by Hells Canyon! It's 20 miles off Interstate 84! Six of them on a well-maintained gravel road on the other side of a tiny ranching community. Today's Wednesday! No one will be there but us," I wheedled until he was persuaded.

On the heels of our purchase of the trailer I signed us up for Harvest Hosts (HH). If you don't already know, HH has agreements with thousands of farmers, ranchers, wineries, breweries, local attractions, and regular Joes all over the US that allow members to stay for free. In exchange, members pay a nominal annual fee to HH and agree to make a minimum donation of $30 to the host. Many hosts operate small businesses that benefit. There are hosts that sell produce, sides of beef (how would I get that home?), alpaca wool caps, and such.

I like the business model but was attracted by HH because I have an affinity for wide open spaces, agricultural landscapes, and an aversion to crowds. The Professor shares these. This was our maiden voyage with HH. Most hosts listed on the HH website have just a handful of spaces and may not offer electricity, let alone sewer hookups and cable tv. Copper Belt had none of these amenities.

They made up for it with good wines, an uber friendly host, and views like most never see. The Eastern Oregon high desert might seem like a strange place to grow grapes and make wine, but I wasn't biased. Immediately after we married in 1982, we moved north from California and the Professor worked for a winery in Prosser, Washington, about 180 highway miles away. With its similar landscape and climate, Copper Belt felt familiar.

Leaving I-84 at Baker City, we followed the old Oregon Trail, passing miles of ranches surrounded by hay fields just starting to grow. It wasn't long before we started climbing and got into the sagebrush. We looked down on immense valleys painted with sagey greens and browns, orange dirt, and in the mountains above, dark green evergreen forests. Across a vast valley from miles away we could see curtains of dust suspended behind fast-moving ranch trucks. Narrow two-track roads led off the main highway and pointed toward eternity. I would have loved to drive them all but we were late and Copper Belt's owner, Travis Cook, was waiting.

Our route on Hwy 86, is part of the Oregon Trail Scenic Byway. It follows the route taken by pioneering emigrants headed for a new life in Oregon. The Bureau of Land Management's 23,000 sq ft Oregon Trail interpretive center (which was closed for remodeling) perched atop Flagstaff Hill, overlooking "nearly seven miles of well-preserved Oregon Trail ruts that extend across Virtue Flat southeast of Flagstaff Hill", where emigrants fought their way through shoulder-tall sagebrush..." Next trip, I promised myself. That day, Copper Belt was the destination.

Most HH stays involve a presentation or tour of the host's business with an opportunity to purchase their products. We were looking forward to tasting and buying wine for our dinner so we didn't even set up the trailer. Since it was our first night out, we were eager to relax before trying to level the trailer. So, Travis started talking and pouring. We relaxed and listened. He was friendly, like we were family or old friends.

Travis produces about 5,000 gallons of wine a year, most of it from vines in his immediate area. And they're good. Though the Professor and I once worked in the wine industry, my palate's no longer refined. What follows is from their tasting notes on the website. I just I liked them and couldn't necessarily pick out cherry flavors or forward fruit.

First, the Gewurztraminer. His is on the dry side with a nice fruity taste. Travis says his wines are "fruit forward". That describes everything we tasted. We followed on with Chardonnay or Riesling, I don't remember, and Pinot Noir ("a light red aged in French oak barrels") that got a decent 92 pt. rating by Wine Enthusiast Magazine. The Professor's favorite was a spicy Syrah ("reminiscent of the Rhone Valley's and which received a 91 pt. rating"). Nice too were Travis' bold Tempranillo with "rich, dark cherry flavors and silky tannins - another 92 pts".), Copper Belt Reserve, a Bordeaux-style red made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. Though the Reserve got only 91 pts, at $90+ a bottle (wouldn't you know it?), it was my favorite.

We walked away with three bottles: the Syrah, Tempranillo, and a nice bottle of Rancher's Red, their everyday red blend. As we tasted, we admired the historic items on display there. Inside and out, history is everywhere you look. Old farm equipment, corrals, fences, and water troughs are sprinkled across the landscape and his grandfather's tiny-legged sheepskin chaps hung on the wall inside as if he'd just left them there.

In 1894, Travis' great grandparents Thomas and Cora Cook and their sons were among the weary emigrants. Winter came early and they only got as far as La Grande, Oregon (a little past Baker City) before turning around to try again in spring. Fortunately, Cora was pregnant that spring, so they settled the Keating Valley east of Baker City where Travis' grandfather Walter was born and later homesteaded. The winery was established in 2010 and named for the rich veins of copper found in the area. Home is where Travis planted his vineyard and makes good wine.

After Travis left to make the kids dinner, we drove on an overlook of the Valley with a beautiful field of alfalfa below. Our nearest neighbors were a mile off. In the distance were jagged, snow-covered peaks reminding me Thomas and Cora waited for spring. Good call. Really good call.

Except for the birds, it was quiet. So quiet.

"You may hear wolves tonight," Travis told us. "There are three packs in the Keating Valley area and it's mating season for them and coyotes. Young males recently kicked out of packs are on the move, looking for mates."

Despite that, cattle and horses were grazing peacefully. We did hear coyotes in the morning but no wolves, and saw one small, wary herd of mule deer in the alfalfa.

A sharp wind came up in the evening and buffeted the trailer but we were cozy in the Nash. In the morning, my coffee and I were up and out by 6 am taking pictures. I'm glad I did because skies were clear and we had it to ourselves. Two other campers arrived with big trucks and trailers after lunch and dark storm clouds rolled in, accompanied by chilly, driving rain. Our experience was slightly less for having to share the Valley the second day, but their presence was good for Travis and Copper Belt Wines.

And just like that, with one HH visit under our belts, we're hooked. It's so good to know that places like these, people like these, still exist in the heart of rural America. So, we traveled on, pleased with HH and our first experience.

Whether it's your first experience with HH or you're a veteran, if you're traveling through Eastern Oregon, the 20-mile diversion to Copper Belt Wines is well worth it. I suppose, had it been open, I would have liked the Oregon Trail interpretive center too. Here's a tip for those who may not be willing to go 20 miles of the Interstate, partially on a gravel road. If you just want to try the wine (and it's worth it), visit Copper Belt's tasting room in Baker City and save yourself the long drive. At least visit their website. I won't judge, but it will be a pity. Trust me.

Check out Harvest Hosts, for sure, and Copper Belt Winery. Tell Travis we sent you!