Hillsboro Tribune: Hillsboro’s Best 2017

Posted on October 3, 2017 by Janice Crane

Thank you for voting for the Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks and Minerals in the Hillsboro Tribune’s annual Hillsboro’s Best awards. We’re honored to receive the highest awards from readers of the Hillsboro Tribune in SIX categories! Thank you so much for naming the Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks & Minerals:

Gold:
2017 Hillsboro's Best Winners logo

Best Family Attraction
Best Place to Take the Kids
Best Place to Volunteer
Best Annual Event
(Summer Festival)
Best Holiday Event
(Thunder-Egg-Stravaganza)

Bronze:

Best Wedding Venue

“The Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks and Minerals walked away with not one, not two, but six awards this year — five of them gold. Readers say they’re the best family attraction in town, hold the best summer and holiday events — their annual summer festival and Thunder Egg-Stravaganza are to die for — and are a great place to volunteer and, yes, even host a wedding.”

Check out the full list of “Hillsboro’s Best” here!

It’s almost here! Join us for Thunder-Egg-Stravaganza 2017!

Posted on March 31, 2017 by Janice Crane

The egg hunt that “rocks” returns once again! Join us from 10-5 at the Rice Museum on Saturday, April 15, 2017. Admission is $5 for everyone ages 5 and up, and includes admission to the museum galleries.

Your mission: locate 4 eggs of different colors around our property and redeem them for prizes. Our prize table includes 2000+ WHOLE thunder eggs. We’ll have volunteers on site all day slicing those thunder eggs in half for FREE so you can be the first to see the surprise inside.

Educational talks on thundereggs in the Northwest will take place inside the museum at 11AM, 1PM, and 3PM. Egg hunting is available all day.

A 2016 participant shows off his freshly cut geode from the prize redemption table.

Frequently asked Questions:

Do we need to be there at a certain time to hunt the eggs?
No! To redeem for a prize, you need to find four eggs of certain colors (based on their location on the property, the “egg zones”). That eliminates the “mad dash” of other egg hunts and keeps it fair! You can show up any time between 10 and 4:30 and we promise there will be eggs hidden.

Can adults participate?
Absolutely! We don’t do age-discrimination here at the Rice Museum, everyone loves a good egg hunt!

Do adults have to pay if they’re not participating?
Yes, your $5 covers your admission to the museum regardless of if you choose to hunt eggs. That’s reduced from normal $10 admission.

Do you sell food?
Limited snacks will be available for purchase at our hospitality table, so bring your own lunch or plan to grab it at one of the fabulous nearby restaurants! Keep in mind, we do not allow food inside the museum, so all picnic activities are based on your personal weather tolerance.

Do we have to pay for parking?
Parking is included with your admission, but it is limited and carpooling is HIGHLY encouraged.

Thunder-Egg-Stravaganza April 4, 2015

Posted on March 12, 2015 by Leslie Moclock

On Saturday, April 4, come to to the museum for our thunderegg hunt! Find whole thundereggs and plastic eggs to redeem for prizes. We will have free thunderegg cutting all day so you can discover what lies inside your find! Additionally, come see a talk on Thundereggs of the Pacific Northwest at 11 AM or 1 PM, as well as our regular museum tour at 2 PM.