The 21-mile North Fork-Flagline Loop is widely regarded as the Central Oregon locals’ favorite epic mountain bike ride. It includes incredible scenery and a hair-raising descent along prime singletrack trails.

It also requires a significant time commitment and a lung-busting 2,000-foot climb along the North Fork and Metolius-Windigo trails.

One way to get some of the high-country flavor of this loop in less time and with less uphill is to simply do an out-and-bike ride from Dutchman Flat Sno-park along the Flagline and Metolius-Windigo trails.

That was my plan on a recent Sunday, so I made the half-hour drive from Bend to Dutchman Flat, just across Cascade Lakes Highway from Mount Bachelor.

I started out through a remote forest of towering old-growth trees, the morning sun seeping in through cracks in the canopy.

Flagline, one of the most popular high-elevation trails near Bend, is best tackled as a shuttle — ride it downhill and then take any combination of trails back to town for some 25 miles. But I did not have the luxury of a shuttle on this day, so I settled for the out-and-back ride.

The trail starts from Dutchman with a tough climb — from 6,350 feet in elevation to nearly 7,000 feet. It was a steep climb through the high-alpine forest. After a few miles, the trail flattened out and I came to the junction with Metolius-Windigo. A right turn would keep me on Flagline and lead me down a fast downhill section toward the Swampy Lakes area and eventually back to Bend.

But I made a left turn onto Metolius-Windigo, one of the highest-elevation bike trails in Central Oregon, not counting those at the Mt. Bachelor Bike Park.

After a steep downhill with some tight turns, I came to a viewpoint of South Sister and Broken Top, just a few miles away. The trail continued with some long uphill sections but remained relatively flat and ridable. Late August usually makes for a somewhat sandy track along Central Oregon trails, but because Flagline and Metolius-Windigo are located at such a high elevation, they tend to remain less sandy than trails closer to Bend.

Come fall, after some rain and freezing temperatures and before snow accumulation, Flagline and Metolius-Windigo will be at their best for mountain bikers.

Eventually I came into an open area with a dramatic view of Broken Top. The trail then led me to a creek crossing, which was just shallow enough for me to ride my bike through.

Much of the Metolius-Windigo Trail parallels Forest Road 370, which leads to the Broken Top Trailhead and the popular hike to No Name Lake in the Three Sisters Wilderness. Bikes are not allowed in wilderness areas, but it is possible to ride your bike to the trailhead then make the hike to the lake. (Reminder that a Central Cascades Wilderness permit is required for the Broken Top Trailhead).

But I remained on the Metolius-Windigo singletrack and decided to turn around after six miles.

I soaked in more of the mountain scenery of Broken Top and South Sister, then turned back onto Flagline for the fast and precipitous drop back down to Dutchman Flat.

All told, I rode about 12 miles and climbed about 800 feet in just over two hours. No, it was not the classic Central Oregon loop ride, but it provided a refreshing escape into the high country without taking up an entire day.