Though we conduct research around the globe, Colwell Geomicrobiology Lab is right at home in the Willamette Valley of Oregon where our backyard is a biogeochemical playground. Join us here to take part in our weekend adventures.

Stargazing Opportunity!

Visiting Corvallis during some clear weather, or maybe you live here?  Want to see the sky and share the experience with a few friends or family?  Click here or on the image below to request an evening stargazing walk that takes about an hour but reaches forward and back in time over millennia.

Romping through Netarts Bay, Oregon to collect cores

North Creek in Siuslaw National Forest near Lincoln City, Oregon

Iron floc and manganese patina in Waldport, Oregon

Biking on the Oregon Coast surrounded by basalt sea stacks

Successful wild chanterelle harvest from Oregon’s Coast Range!

Summer hike on Iron Mountain near Jefferson Wilderness, Western Cascades

Hike to the summit of Smith Rock in Terrebonne, Eastern Oregon

Home-grown heirloom tomato ripening in the Willamette Valley

The Pacific Northwest expresses an unmatched grandeur. Persistent lava flows carved and shaped Oregon’s coastline, creating steep basalt cliffs and etherial sea stacks. Old growth forests stand tall as giants in the Coastal Range, preserving ecological rarities. Continuous and violent volcanic eruptions form the Cascade Mountains to the East, boasting magnificent peaks. Adventure awaits!