Tarantulas also have an undeservedly bad reputation, according to the Desert Museum.

In 1982, Chandler helped establish the High Desert Museum near Bend.

During his lifetime, Chandler contributed both time and money to the High Desert Museum.

Their elder child, their daughter Carmie, works as a guide in the Desert Museum.

Although it was crowded, the Desert Museum is mostly open-air so there was plenty of elbow room.

But be warned - the locals call this place the "Snoring Desert Museum."

Across the street I heard a woman say to her companion in an odd accent, "It's the Desert Museum.

In 1967, much of the land was sold to create the Desert Museum, which now has a Rodin exhibition.

Many exhibits at the High Desert Museum are outdoors in the dry, pine-scented air.

Down the road from the Desert Museum, the studios make an entertaining afternoon after an educational morning.