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 Fields
is located in southeast Oregon, Harney County, near
Steens Mountain. Fields is a little town and ranching
community. It has never been easy to make a living
ranching, but some ranches here have been in the same
family for generations. Other ranches are
corporate-owned, and are operated by managers who live
on the ranch. The oldest ranch in the area is the
historic Whitehorse Ranch. Whitehorse is a large ranch
with about three or four buckaroos and seven or eight
farm hands in the busy time of the year. The ranchers
work with the Bureau of Land Management to keep the
public lands open for many, varied uses. The cows
grazing here are an important part of a careful plan of
range management. Water is very important to all people
here. Average rainfall is less than ten inches a year,
classifying this land as a high desert range.
Fields was established in 1881 by Charles Fields.
Fields consists of a store, cafe, gas station, camp
ground, hotel, post office, and a few houses. There is
also an historic cemetery about 100 yards from the
store. Tom and Sandra Downs, who now operate
all the businesses in Fields, are happy to welcome the
many visitors each year.
The Fields School was established about 1900. It
began with one room and one teacher. In later years a
new wing was added to the school; now there are two
rooms, and two teachers for the kindergarten through
eighth grade students.
 Natural
attractions in the Fields area: Alvord Desert
(Pictured on right). Various hot springs spread
throughout the area. The mountains of the Fields region
are the Pueblo, Steens, and the Trout Creek Mountain
ranges. There are various kinds of wild life such as
elk, Mule Deer, Prong Horn, Big Horn Sheep, pheasant,
doves, geese, and ducks. Rainbow Trout may be found in
the many lakes and streams. For hunting, fishing and
site seeing, Fields is one of the best. As you explore
our region please leave the gates as you found them.
Remember some land is privately owned, so check first.
Points of interest
Bog Hot Springs, White Horse Hot Springs, Alvord Hot
Springs, all of these hot springs are open to the
public. You can also view the East Rim of the Steens
Mountain. The Fields Café is also another main
attraction, known far and wide for their famous
hamburgers and milkshakes. The fishing, hunting, and
site seeing is larger-than-life in Fields, and the
community invites you to come and see for yourself.
View of the Steens Mountain (on left)
Climate
The climate in the winter is mild, seldom below zero
degree temperatures. The summer is nice and not
overbearingly hot. The temperatures range between the
high 70's and 80's. In late August there may be a day or
two that the temperature reaches the 90's.
Crops and soil
Crops grown in the Fields area consist of meadow hay and
alfalfa. The ground is sufficient for some vegetable and
flower gardening. The growing season is from mid May to
mid September.
The soil in Fields varies. In the highest parts you will
find the soil has little or no alkali present. Down on
the flats the soil has an extremely large amount of
alkali present that leaves a thick layer of borax on the
surface.
The Fields Rodeo pictured on right.
Harney County is an area of over 10,000 square
miles. It is the largest county in Oregon and the ninth
largest in the US.
Nearby, the Malheur Wildlife Refuge is an
internationally famous bird watching destination and
Malheur Lake forms one of the largest freshwater marshes
in the country. Over 50,000 birders, from all over the
world visit each year.
Mileage from Burns
The total highway miles from Burns to Fields is 115 mile |
