Bay Area, CA to Bend, OR

Me and my family are attending a wedding in Bend, OR on June 27th and taking the week before to camp and explore the area. I thought this might be a good place to get some advice on the sites and things to do.

We are coming from the Bay Area in CA and heading up the 97. We will want to camp around half way the first night (like around Klamath Falls area), then spend a couple nights camping around Bend or in the Deschutes NF. We are renting a house in Bend for few days before the wedding, but will want to make some day trips and check out the area. And of course I'm gonna want to do some wheeling!

Can anyone suggest some cool places to camp and areas to check out? Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

 

Multnomah Falls oregon & klamath falls oregon

 

my second home is in southern bend. I'd recommend the lava fields by lava butte, the bat caves right next to it, paulina/east lake has a cool lookout on a dead volcanic crest that separates the two lakes, burns or is 2 hours east with a nice bird refuge and steens mountains if you want to drive up all 10k ft. Near klamath is the famous crater lake.

If you like fly fishing, the deschutes/crooked river are great, smith rock is just a bit northish from bend if you want to hike, rockclimb, trek kind of deal. Sisters town is famous for its style of old western architecture as well. Plenty to do in the area, depends what you like to see. Oh and dont forget ice caves and hot spring resorts in the area as well.

 

^awesome info. Thanks!

 

So I did some more research and for the drive up, it looks like north of Weed on Hwy 97 there is a campsite called Juanita Lake, which would be perfectly located for distance the first day. So right now the plan is stay there the first night, then travel up to the Cascade Lakes Hwy the next day and camp in the area for two nights on the way to Bend.

There are a few campsites to the west of the Cascade Lakes Hwy that are about half way up to Mt. Bachelor: Cultus Lake, Little Cultus Lake, then further in there's Taylor lake. Or it looks like we could take some dirt roads to get over to a couple campsites on the north end of Waldo Lake. Anyone have any opinions on any of those sites or trails in the area? There's also a few campgrounds on the east side of the highway on the north side of the Wikiup Reservoir. Any opinions on those sites or others in that area would be appreciated!

We'd either pack up the next day and make camp the next night further north around Mt. Bachelor, or just hang out and explore the area and then check out the north part of the Cascade Lakes Hwy on the last day while heading into Bend. Around Bachelor, it looks like most car camping sites are right off the road and I prefer to camp away from the road if possible.

We'd like to check out the Newberry Volcanic Monument at some point too. Is that a good day trip to take while we are staying in Bend?

Thanks in advance for anyone's help!

 

newberry monument is like an hour tops for a visit. you have to sign up an hour an advance to drive to the top but the fields are walkable for a good 30 mins. There is a nice bike trail surrounding the fields and river that is fun and scenic.

camping will be very difficult on the weekends as they are filling up fast due to the weather and recent opening season. last 2 weeks i was camping at smith rock for a nice day climb and hike and i had to park 2 miles away from the normal parking area. The campsites with lakes around bachelor are always crowded and if you are lucky you will find a nice spot.

 

Super enjoy your trip!

 

I love that area!
Just went up there last weekend.
My favorite spot was Waldo Lake North Campground, but might be too far out of your range.
Love the Deschutes river too. Great for kayaking.

 

Thanks guys! We will be rolling into Deschutes on a Monday so hopefully finding a campsite won't be too much trouble. But hey, it's a NF so if we can't find one we'll make one!

 

Fortune cookie says this will be a good trip.

 

Sizzle, how did your trip to Central Oregon go? Did you guys end up finding a good camping spot? Were you able to visit any of the places mentioned above?

 

I don't leave for another week, but I'll report on how it went when I get back.

 

If you're looking to do a little exploring, the Painted Hills are in the area... Kinda far, but pretty surreal.

DSC_0377 by Alex Wilson, on Flickr

DSC_0387 by Alex Wilson, on Flickr

From the Painted Hills there is a gravel road that can take you to a camping spot by my parent's ranch. There's a boat launch in to the John Day River about a mile from it with an out house. Unreal fishing in that stretch of the river... They'll literally bite a bare hook. LOTS of wild life in the area. If you don't see at least 50 deer, you're not looking.

Here's a coord for the camp site... 44.706884, -120.171155 and some pics... There is a road there, but if you stay for a night you'll likely not see a car go by. Maybe a couple trucks headed to town in the morning.

Mule Deer in the fields and hills nearby...
DSC_0392 by Alex Wilson, on Flickr

DSC_0395 by Alex Wilson, on Flickr

DSC_0036 by Alex Wilson, on Flickr

DSC_0034 by Alex Wilson, on Flickr
Also, no one mentioning Crater Lake...? What's this world coming to?? If you have a dog, it's not allowed in too many areas of the park. Basically any trails. They're welcome in the camp grounds though.

DSC_0319 by Alex Wilson, on Flickr

DSC_0254 by Alex Wilson, on Flickr

 

I was a month ahead of myself. Oops! Hope you have a good time when you are here.

 

Alex nice pictures.

 

X2. Thanks for the tips and the secret family camp and fishing hole!! Pretty awesome of you Alex. Sweet 3rd gen too.

We have camped at Crater Lake before. Cool area but we are going to push past it and explore some new territory this trip.