Sweeping canyon vistas, amazingly weird but beautiful rock formations carved by time, desert oases and elusive wildlife are just a few features of this off-the-radar trail in the Crooked River National Grassland. About a 40-mile drive from Bend, and located just northeast of Sisters, Alder Springs requires a hairy, white-knuckle drive over jagged rocks and deep potholes to the trailhead. The trail reaches Whychus Creek at Alder Springs, where snowmelt from the Cascade Range “magically” reappears after a 40-mile downhill trip, according to an informational sign at the creek. After crossing the creek, the singletrack trail continues back up a ridge, and goes another 1½ miles to where Whychus Creek flows into the Middle Deschutes, just south of Lake Billy Chinook. The trail closes Dec. 1 to protect wildlife and soil, so make the trip this month.

— Mark Morical, The Bulletin