Middle Metolius River Hike
From Oregon Hikers Field Guide
- Start point: Lower Bridge Trailhead
- Ending point: Lower Metolius Trailhead - if you hike that far
- Hike type: In and out
- Distance: 22 miles
- Elevation gain: 500 feet
- High point: 2850 feet
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Seasons: Spring through fall
- Family Friendly: Yes, for a short distance
- Backpackable: Yes
- Crowded: Only the first couple miles in the summer
Contents |
Hike Description
The Metolius River is best known for fly fishing. The water is very cold and clean. At Lower Bridge there are warnings that the river is blocked below here making boating impossible. There shouldn't be any boats going by while you are hiking. The Middle Metolius River Hike is a less popular hike than the Wizard Falls Loop Hike. There is no access to any public roads as you walk along. There some nice campsites all along the route - nice flat areas right next to the river with a fire pit. For the first 1.5 miles, the trail follows along the river - hikers only along here. The rest of the way is an old dirt road, gated closed. A negative about this hike is there are no views. It's almost claustrophobic. There are trees all the way to the river. You get occasional glimpses of hills and cliffs in the distance. There are no side trails, except short ones to campsites on the river. The forest is not really dense like the west side of the Cascades, but it's close enough to the crest and it's a high enough altitude so there is still a fair amount of rain. There is a mixture of pine, fir, and cedar trees, with some undergrowth in places.
Start the hike at the Lower Bridge Trailhead. Walk through Lower Bridge Campground. This campground can be busy in the summer. In the winter, it's officially closed but you can still camp there - it's not gated - but there's no drinking water, garbage pick-up, or toilet paper in the outhouse.
The trail takes off at the far (north) end of the campground and is well marked. The trail closely follows the river. At about 0.8 and one mile, there are two nice campsites. At about 1.5 miles, the trail peters out. From here, occasionally there's a trail along the river, but it's easiest to follow the dirt road. Candle Creek Creek Campground, a semi-developed automobile accessible campground is across the river. It would be difficult to cross the river because it's fairly big.
Up to Mile 7, where there's a private area, there are tire tracks in the road and any trees have been removed, so the walking is easy. Sometimes the road is right next to the river, and sometimes it's a ways from the river, which you can still hear. There are a number of nice campsites in the first six miles. Wherever there's a side road towards the river, follow it and there's probably a campsite.
At Mile 7 from the trailhead is the private area, with prominent "No Trespassing" signs. A little farther is a fairly new cabin. That would be a nice place for whoever owns it - I bet a fly fisherman. Beyond the cabin, there are no tire tracks, and there are probably some trees across the road, so the going is a little harder. The undergrowth is not very dense, so it's pretty easy to get around anything.
Between about Miles 8 and 10 are a number of nice campsites. At Mile 10, the road ends, and there is a typical trail. This is more overgrown and difficult to follow.
I went as far as Mile 11, at which point the trail kind of petered out into several possible trails that all became difficult to follow in underbrush. This was far enough for me, and there was a nice campsite back a ways, so I just turned around here.
From the map, at about Mile 12 the trail reaches another road, which has a gate. At about Mile 16 is a primitive campground (Monty) which the Forest Service says is automobile accessible. Two miles beyond Monty Campground is a winter gate and the Lower Metolius Trailhead
Maps
- Maps: Hike Finder
- See the first link under 'Trip Reports' below for a good GPS track.
- Green Trails Maps: Whitewater River, OR #558
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service: Sisters Ranger District
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service: Deschutes National Forest
- Pacific Northwest Recreation Map Series: Willamette Cascades
- Pacific Northwest Recreation Map Series: Central Oregon Cascades
- National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map: Mount Jefferson, Mount Washington
- Adventure Maps: Mount Jefferson, Bull of the Woods & Opal Creek Wilderness Trail Map
Fees, Regulations, etc.
- Share trail with bikes and horses
- Respect private property
- Pay attention to campfire bans
Trip Reports
- Search Trip Reports for Middle Metolius River Hike
Related Discussions / Q&A
- Search Trail Q&A for Middle Metolius River Hike
Guidebooks
- 101 Hikes in the Majestic Mount Jefferson Region by Matt Reeder
- Hiking Central Oregon & Beyond by Virginia Meissner
More Links