State park · 30 min north
Smith Rock State Park
Towering rock walls above the Crooked River, a top climbing spot with river trails for everyone.
- Half day · Easy to hard
- Year-round; summer is hot
- Oregon State Parks day-use parking permit
Day Trippin' › Oregon › From Bend
Day trips from Bend
Bend is the gateway to Smith Rock, the Cascade Lakes, lava caves and Newberry's crater lakes, with the Painted Hills and Crater Lake in reach for a long day. The best day trips from Bend, by drive time.
65 places within a 3-hour drive, by real roads.
10 day trips from Bend
- Benham Falls 28 min southwest
- Peter Skene Ogden and Crooked River Gorge 29 min north
- Smith Rock State Park 30 min north
- Proxy Falls 1 hr 2 min west
- Cove Palisades State Park 1 hr 6 min north
- Painted Hills 1 hr 40 min northeast
- Crater Lake National Park 1 hr 56 min southwest
- Timberline Lodge 2 hr 6 min north
- Maryhill Stonehenge 2 hr 34 min north
- Silver Falls State Park 2 hr 35 min northwest
Within an hour from Bend 12 spots
Viewpoint · 29 min north
Peter Skene Ogden and Crooked River Gorge
A 300-foot-deep gorge spanned by highway and railroad bridges.
- 30 min · Easy
- Year-round
- No pass or fee needed
Trail · 28 min southwest
Benham Falls
A flat riverside walk to a churning rapid on the Deschutes.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Spring-fall
- Recreation pass
Waterfall · 31 min west
Tumalo Falls
A 97-foot falls a short walk from the parking area west of Bend.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Summer-fall
- Recreation pass (NW Forest Pass works)
Scenic drive · 44 min northwest
McKenzie Pass and Dee Wright Observatory
A stone lookout in a sea of black lava with views of the Three Sisters.
- 2 hrs · Easy
- Summer-fall (OR 242 closed about Nov to mid-June)
- No pass or fee needed
Viewpoint · 38 min west
Mount Bachelor scenic chairlift
A summer chairlift ride to Pine Marten Lodge, about 7,800 feet up, with Cascade views.
- 2 hrs · Easy
- Summer (about late June-early Oct); ski area in winter
- Ticket
Waterfall · 40 min north
Steelhead Falls
An easy desert trail to a wide falls on the Deschutes River.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Year-round
- No pass or fee needed
Lake · 45 min west
Sparks Lake
A shallow lake with lava islands and South Sister towering above; great for paddling.
- 2 hrs · Easy
- Summer-fall
- Recreation pass (NW Forest Pass works)
1 to 2 hours from Bend 9 spots
National park · 1 hr 56 min southwest
Crater Lake National Park
The deepest lake in the US, impossibly blue, inside a collapsed volcano.
- Full day · Easy to moderate
- Rim Drive about July-Oct; snow most of the year
- NPS entrance fee
Viewpoint · 1 hr 40 min northeast
Painted Hills
Hills banded red, gold and black, part of John Day Fossil Beds.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy
- Year-round; spring best
- Free
State park · 1 hr 6 min north
Cove Palisades State Park
A lake where three rivers meet, ringed by canyon walls.
- Half day · Easy
- Year-round; best in summer
- Oregon State Parks day-use parking permit
Waterfall · 1 hr 2 min west
Proxy Falls
A short loop through lava to a lacy falls in an old forest.
- 1 hr · Easy
- Mid-June to October
- NW Forest Pass or day-use fee
Trail · 2 hr north
Mirror Lake (Mount Hood)
A short forest hike to a lake that mirrors Mount Hood.
- 2 hrs · Easy to moderate
- Summer-fall
- NW Forest Pass (May-Oct)
Viewpoint · 1 hr 7 min north
Metolius River headwaters
A full-size river springs out of the ground below Black Butte.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Year-round
- No pass or fee needed
Viewpoint · 1 hr 22 min south
Fort Rock
A huge ring of volcanic rock rising from the high desert.
- 2 hrs · Easy
- Spring-fall
- No pass or fee needed
Lake · 1 hr 36 min northwest
Detroit Lake
A long reservoir in the Cascade foothills for boating, swimming and camping.
- Half day · Easy
- Summer
- Oregon State Parks day-use parking permit (Mongold day-use area)
2 to 3 hours from Bend 40 spots
Historic lodge · 2 hr 6 min north
Timberline Lodge
A 1930s stone and timber lodge high on Mount Hood, with year-round snow above.
- 2 hrs · Easy
- Year-round
- Sno-Park permit Nov 1-Apr 30
Historic site · 2 hr 34 min north
Maryhill Stonehenge
A full-size concrete Stonehenge built as a WWI memorial.
- 30 min · Easy
- Year-round
- No pass or fee needed
State park · 2 hr 35 min northwest
Silver Falls State Park
The Trail of Ten Falls, including a path behind 177-foot South Falls.
- Half day · Moderate
- Year-round
- Oregon State Parks day-use parking permit
Farm · 2 hr 43 min north
Hood River and the Fruit Loop
Orchards, farm stands, cideries and wineries with Mount Hood in view.
- Half day · Easy
- Spring blossoms through fall harvest
- No pass or fee needed
Lake · 2 hr 1 min north
Trillium Lake
A small lake with the classic reflection of Mount Hood and an easy loop trail.
- 1-2 hrs · Easy
- Summer-fall; snowshoe in winter
- Day-use fee May-Nov (annual NW Forest Pass accepted, other passes not); Sno-Park permit in winter
Viewpoint · 2 hr 58 min northwest
Vista House and Crown Point
A stone observatory high above the Columbia River at the start of the waterfall road.
- 1 hr · Easy
- Year-round
- No pass or fee needed
Trail · 2 hr 13 min northeast
Blue Basin
A trail into a blue-green badlands canyon with fossil replicas along the way.
- 2-3 hrs · Moderate
- Spring-fall
- Free
Town · 2 hr 21 min north
The Dalles
Murals, the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center and dry-side sunshine.
- 2-3 hrs · Easy
- Year-round
- Museum admission
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Drive times are by road on a typical day from ZIP 97701 (OpenStreetMap data with the OSRM route planner). Facts checked against official sites; passes and hours change, so check before you go.