Well, this is a great place to come if you've got a boat. Huge lake with stunning scenery unlike…read morewhat you normally see at lakes. The ramps to launch your boat are reasonably spacious and they even have a kayak launch which I was excited to see. I have friends that catch fish here regularly, so I know it has some decent fishing too. We came to spin the kids around on a hot day. They had so much fun and getting in when the heat got out of hand was refreshing. I did t explore too much, but it didn't look like the campground had too much shade, on a hot day you may get not want to be there. Down by the docks they had a nice beach for swimmers and they had restrooms, which were just put toilets, not a fan. Other than that, I will definitely be back here.

Wowza! The locals may be used to this stunning state park, but it was shockingly strange for us to…read morearrive after a long drive from Idaho. If coming from the Bend area, It quite literally is located over a cliff. There is a very, very narrow, and steep decent on a 2 Lane road that takes you down into the middle of a ravine. You drive along the perimeter of the ravine across a bridge and up and over the other side of the ravine until you follow the road to the campsite. Our GPS did not direct us properly to the campsite and the road was so narrow with no signs pointing us in the right direction. There was a moment of dread thinking we were going the wrong way when our GPS said we had arrived but we were in the middle of the road with no turn off. It was an act of faith to keep on going until the road finally delivered us at the campsite on the other side of the ravine. The campsite was well-maintained and had a lot of staff in the form of Park rangers to assist with check-in, selling firewood and ice, and maintenance. Each site had a paved driveway to park on. They have fire rings and picnic tables, with a decent amount of space between sites.

Lots of little side roads to get lost down. The area features many square miles of relative…read morehorizontality, interrupted by occasional sheer verticality. Place was settled by farmers in the early 20th Century - but many of them couldn't make a living there. The government bought the land and it's managed by the USFS now. Several campgrounds there - Skull Hollow is one of my favourites and a favourite for Smith Rock climbers.; Haystack Reservoir has a problem with mosquitoes. Lots of places to dry-camp. Several trails are in the Skull Hollow-Gray Butte Area, and there's one to the Rimrock Spring wetlands, right off Hiway 26. Much of the CRNG is good for cross-country hiking - junipers and grasses; not lots of dense vegetation. There's also a big chunk of the Grassland west of the Deschutes, that looks promising, but I haven't explored that yet... Along the rivers there are state and county parks sandwiched within the Grassland. The CRNG headquarters on southbound 97/26 shares a building with the Chamber of Commerce in Madras.

Fantastic views. Easy hike, paved road. Parking is available. Clean restroom. Cute complimentary…read morerock climbing for kids.

I'm shocked that I haven't written a review for this amazing place!…read more Where do I even begin?! Definitely on my top 5 places to hike. It's absolutely gorgeous, amazing, heavenly, stunning, oh my I can go on LOL! We have hiked here every year for the past 5 years. It's a strenuous hike but such a great workout and your reward for making it to the top is truly worth it--absolutely breathtaking. I love it! Make sure you bring water because you will need it. I also recommend arriving early because after 9am, parking can be very challenging. We normally start our hike around 7am. There is a parking fee of $12.50 for non-state residents but if you live in Oregon, then you only pay 10 buckaroos. I highly recommend anyone to visit this amazing place!

After visiting Smith Rock State Park. we stumbled upon this wayside/overlook where you can enjoy…read morevertical basalt cliffs and secenic river canyon over the Crooked River in Oregon. This spot is on the boarder of the Deschutes and Jefferson counties. This stop is located just 9 miles North of Redmond or 26 miles from Bend on the US Route 97 where this a rest area and viewpoint with tons of parking. Facilities include restrooms, picnic tables and dramatic viewing of the Crooked River Canyon from the pathways or the bridge. For photographers this is an amazing place to get a shot of the Crooked River Canyon and surrounding areas. You can also walk across the historic Crooked River High Bridge just north of the park. Three historic bridges connect both sides of the canyon, unfortunately only one can be crossed today by pedestrians. Two of Oregon's tallest mountains- Mt Hood and Mt Jefferson are visible from the viewpoint on a clear day. Fun facts: the park was named in honor of Peter Skene Ogden who led the trapping parties of the Bay Company back in 1925. Worth a stop to take in the views and enjoy part of history!

First of all, the restrooms here a the best rest stop restrooms I've been to, clean and like 10…read moreindividual stalls! Why don't other places do this? Anyways onto the real reason we stopped, we went here at the end of August. Made our way here after Smith Rock which was only about 10-15 minute drive, it was a beautiful sunny day, the view was breathtaking both ways. They had bungee jumping on the bridge when we went so that kinda blocked a bit of the view but was really cool to watch.

Sisters is a perfect little city, in my humble opinion. And one of the best things to do is just to…read morestroll... through art galleries, then grabbing a cup of coffee at Sisters Coffee House or an ice cream cone from BJ's True Old Fashioned Batch Ice Cream, then kicking back in this park. When the days are hot, and that is often in Central Oregon, this is always a nice shady spot. It connects Cascade Avenue and Ash Street and has a few wood carved benches, a public restroom and a small water feature with a glorious sculpture. As a nod to one of Sisters' biggest tourist attractions, the annual Quilt Show, there is a large mural on one wall with a series of colorful quilts blowing in the wind. The park is tiny but still manages to pack a punch. It is the location of the Sisters Farmer's Market on Friday nights in the summer, which has a good selection of vendors and usually some musical entertainment on the lawn. But, it is just a great place to take a moment and enjoy the area any day of the week. Essentially in the middle of it all, just the perfect place to catch your breath. The full name of the park is Harold & Dorothy Barclay Park, who were early residents and mill owners. I can't think of a nicer way to be remembered by my community.

When exploring a new town or city, I always am on the lookout for parks. We came upon this park…read morewhile visiting the town of Sisters,Oregon. This park offers plenty of picnic tables, a beautiful covered bridge that is built over the creek and lovely, tall mature trees. The grass is so green but that's Oregon for you. It is an extremely clean park. We stopped and had a snack and just enjoyed the sounds of the creek. We walked along the gravel path just taking in the views but then it began to drizzle so we had to take cover. I would definitely recommend and I hope I get to return here someday.

A beautiful park right here in downtown Bend. What seems so far away is within walking distance if…read moreyou are anywhere close to downtown Bend. Lots of space to throw a blanket and chill. You can put i. to float here as well.

Drake Park has a lovely walking trail as well as water access, restrooms, picnic tables and large…read moregrassy areas. There is alot of street parking (4 hour max). There were people floating on paddle boards, there could be some good fishing within as well as alot of crayfish. There are beautiful homes along the waterfront as well as some resturants and downtown access from the parkway.

Really nice little park especially on those hot afternoons for kids and adults! Splash away!read more

Nice park! New bathrooms and clean facility with artistic flair. Splash pad is a nice edition. You…read morehave to step on the large raised blue disc to get the splash pad going, this can be tricky to figure out if it's not pointed out to you. Great stag with a rotating array of artists. Good / easy parking.

Really nice, well-maintained park with a lot of different options. There's a play structure for…read morelittle kids, a baseball diamond, a volleyball net, and a big grassy area to hang out or play. Plenty of picnic tables if you want to stay awhile. I liked that there's a water station for both people and dogs, which is super handy. A good amount of parking in the connected lot.

This is a cool playground we found at Sunriver. I'm surprised it wasn't listed on Yelp. My kids had…read morea blast and my husband and I even took our turns on the teeter totter and had an intense game of tetherball that took me back to the 6th grade. Good find! No public restroom, just two porta-potties. This is along one of the biking trails but there is also a parking lot.

A serene and beautiful area with a 50 million year well-documented fossil history. There are 3…read moreunits, each over an hour from the others, so you need at least two full days to see them. Beautiful picnic grounds at Painted Hills, amazing visitors center at Sheep Rock.

We visited all 3 units last week, checking out some new sites and revisiting others. The Blue Basin…read moreat the Sheep Rock Unit is simply stunning, a must-see for sure. We also finally made it to the Clarno Unit and took all 3 trails. Just a gorgeous setting, and amazing to get right up to the arch. We love the Fossil Beds, all 3 units are amazing...highly recommend!