Starting at Bend, on the Cascade Lakes Scenic Byway, you’ll come across Drake Park at the Highway 97 and Franklin Avenue intersection. Visitors are encouraged to park in Mirror Pond Parking Lot (just west of the Franklin and Wall intersection) and explore the charming downtown area. The original site of Bend was selected because it was an easy location for early travelers to cross the Deschutes River.

Fifteen miles (24.1 km) west of Bend on the Cascade Lakes Highway you'll find hiking, mountain biking and cross-country skiing opportunities at the Swampy Lakes area. From the trailhead at the north end of the parking lot, skiers or hikers can enjoy a variety of marked trails from two to ten miles (3.2 to 16 km) in length. The area provides five shelters that are usually stocked with wood in the winter.

Mt. Bachelor Ski and Summer Resort is the perfect place to spend the day fishing or skiing, depending on the season. Just west of the entrance to Mt. Bachelor, a whole new scenic landscape beckons to be enjoyed and appreciated. By some quirk of nature, the small pumic desert, called Dutchman Flat, has not accumulated enough soil nutrients to sustain the growth of many plants. Pusspaws with pink blooms and sulfur flowers with yellow blooms are a few of the hardy plants that grow in this unique area. The movie, How the West was Won was filmed here.

On the byway you will pass Todd Lake, Sparks Lake and Green Lakes Trailhead, all worthy stops. Continue on west of the Green Lakes Trailhead to a small, but scenic, area with several springs surfacing from the edge of a huge lava flow, creating a little meadow. Along with the lush meadow grass, you'll find moss, blue lupines and Indian pictographs painted on the face of a large boulder, which indicate an ancient Indian trail. This place is Devils Garden. Stop here to recount the legend of the area and explore a bit of the ancient Indian trail.

Continue on the byway to pass many picturesque lakes until you come to the Osprey Observation Point. Constructed in 1929, it has become an outstanding fishing area and a breeding ground for the osprey (fish hawk), a potentially endangered species. From the parking lot, a short walk takes you to an observation area on the west side of the reservoir. Here you can view snags and artificial nesting poles inhabited by the birds. Many visitors are entertained as osprey dive for fish from more than a hundred feet above the water. From here, continue south till you reach the end of the byway.

Travel Season/Dates

Portions of this road are closed in winter.