The Okanogan Valley runs roughly north from the town toward the Canadian border, and the drive along US-97 through it is one of the more quietly satisfying stretches of road in eastern Washington. Apple orchards line the valley floor in some sections, with cattle ranches on the benches above; sagebrush covers the drier hills. The light in late summer, when the apples are heavy on the trees, is something particular to this country.
North of Okanogan, the valley narrows through Tonasket and widens again toward Oroville at the border. Side roads branch off into ranch country and up onto the plateau to the east, where the landscape opens into enormous wheat and range grass distances. None of this is dramatic in the way of the Cascades or the Columbia Gorge — it is quiet, unhurried country, and best appreciated at that speed.