Corvallis might be a busy college town, but it's surrounded by a rural paradise—where farm stays let guests help with daily chores, century-old farms host award-winning wineries, and working farms serve meals whose ingredients were grown just a few feet away.
In fact, nearly 1,000 farms and ranches—many of them family-run—dot the pastures, meadows, and forested retreats around Corvallis. Together, they produce the many food items that give the wider Willamette Valley a well-earned reputation as a destination for foodies from all over the world. So if you'd like to spend a weekend savoring our homegrown culinary delights, here's a guide to five farm stops near Corvallis.
The magical Leaping Lamb Farm & Farm Stay offers the rare chance to spend the night on a working farm—and, if you'd like, to help with daily chores.
Choose between two overnight stays at the farm, which sits in the Oregon Coast Range foothills. One is a cozy, two-bedroom cottage—and the other is a six-bedroom farmhouse that dates back to 1895. Both sit surrounded by a creek where salmon spawn in fall and wooded hiking trails.
If you'd like to pitch in, feel free to help with chores in the morning or afternoon. If visiting in spring, you may even get to bottle feed baby lambs. Afterward, retreat to your overnight stay to sip Oregon-grown pinot noir and stargaze under clear night skies.
Leaping Lamb Farm & Farm Stay hosts several animals—including a peacock, horses, goats, and sheep.
Gathering Together Farm serves lunch and dinner at an on-site restaurant.
Just five minutes south of Philomath sits Gathering Together Farm—which dishes lunch and dinner fare on an enclosed veranda that's draped in greenery and charm. Most of what's on the menu was grown on-site—and just about everything else comes from neighboring farms.
Mouth-watering entrées change with the season but might include roasted (farm-raised) chicken served with butternut squash risotto — and pork chops from Deck Family Farm alongside kabocha squash mousse. The eatery is open between April and November; dinner reservations are available and, especially in summer, highly recommended.
Just 15 minutes south of Corvallis, Tyee Wine Cellars sits on a family farm that dates back more than 130 years—and remains as enchanting as ever, thanks to a crowd-pleasing mix of award-winning wines and natural beauty.
Sample a wide range of cool-weather varietals in Tyee's tasting room, which occupies the farm's onetime creamery and is open April through December. Afterward, stretch your legs on the winery's one-mile hiking trail, which passes springtime wildflower displays and offers the chance to see elk, migrating birds, and other wildlife.
Learn more about Corvallis wineries, and check out our list of 10 beautiful wineries in the Willamette Valley.
Tyee Wine Cellars pours award-winning wines in the shadow of hazelnut groves and an old-growth oak forest. (Photo by Alison Smith)
Garland Nursery has been a regional mainstay since 1937. (Photo by Joey Hamilton)
Whether you're a green thumb or can't keep a cactus alive, you'll find plenty to adore at Garland Nursery—a fourth-generation, family-owned business that has been serving local gardeners around Corvallis and Albany since 1937.
While you'll find plenty of garden starts and accessories, it's also possible to stroll through (and admire) more than six acres of trees, shrubs, flowers, and other plants. Afterward, stop into Garland's gift shop for wind chimes, candles, local wines, and a variety of home decor items.
If visiting in summer, check out Garland Nursery's events calendar to see what's coming soon; events include an art-and-wine festival featuring works from more than 40 regional artists.
The family-owned Thyme Garden launched in 1990 in the community of Alsea—just 20 miles southwest of Corvallis in the Oregon Coast Range foothills—and has since cultivated one of the largest collections of heirloom herb seeds in the United States.
Today, visitors can stroll through more than 250 raised beds showcasing more than 650 varieties of specialty herbs. For an inside look at the garden and what makes it so special, sign up for one of The Thyme Garden's workshops, luncheons, or tours—or stop by during one of its annual events.
Save time for the gift shop, where you can purchase herbal teas, spices, and other garden-themed goodies.
The Thyme Garden showcases a wide range of herbs in the Oregon Coast Range foothills.
