South river trail a sight to see

Published 5:00 am Wednesday, October 22, 2003

There are some things in life that other people just expect of you.

You should have seen the look on my colleague’s face the other day when I admitted I’d never seen ”Pulp Fiction,” a film, he said, that changed the way movies are made.

Or the disbelief when I cop to the fact that at 40-something, I’ve never been to New York City.

I have another confession.

I’ve been in Bend four years, writing about the Central Oregon outdoors for almost three, and, until last week, hadn’t hiked the southern-most section of the Deschutes River Trail from the Benham Falls Picnic Area near Lave Butte. I know, you probably have.

But if you’re one of the few who have overlooked this area just down the road, there’s really no reason to wait any longer.

It’s close by, feels as if it’s miles away, and offers plenty of breathing space. And it’s a viable lower-elevation alternative when the weather turns nasty. And you know that’s only a matter of time.

First off, the Benham East picnic area at the end of the road past Lava Butte is an inviting place to chow down a picnic lunch in the fall. There are tables there, lots of big ponderosa pines and bathroom facilities.

According to a sign there, the park-like flat had been used by indigenous people for about 7,000 years. Primitive tools have turned up there over the years indicating that Indians hunted, fished and gathered plants in the area well in to the 1800s. Then, in 1910, the Shevlin-Hixon Lumber Co. began operations in Central Oregon and saved the old-growth pines at this spot so employees could picnic here.

As many as 2,000 employees were shuttled from Bend on railroad cars every year for an annual company soiree.

If you’re hiking with small children, the short interpretive loop trail that follows the river upstream is a good choice (but even if you and your party are all experienced hikers, the loop is worth a gander). There are informational signs all along the way explaining everything from the first recorded visit of a white person to the area (Nathaniel J. Wyeth in December 1834) to what all those dilapidated pilings in the river were for (a dock from which logs were loaded on to railroad cars and shipped to the mill in Bend).

It’s a scenic, wooded way and well worth the effort.

About a half-mile downriver from the trailhead is Benham Falls, a seething caldron of hydraulic hell that’s awesome to look at but would be disastrous to navigate in, say, a canoe. And it’s difficult not to contemplate stuff like that, even when you’re checking out the falls from a safe distance.

Before you get there, however, you’ll cross over a wooden foot bridge to the west side of the Deschutes where a big tangled log jam impedes the flow. Thirty years ago, logs were intentionally jammed in front of the bridge to prevent the pilings from being damaged by debris floating by. The logs were tied together then anchored to the pilings. In the intervening years, silt accumulated between the logs and plants and trees sprouted.

The log jam serves another purpose. If any unwitting canoeists happened to make it by the warning signs upstream, they’d be hard-pressed to get through this mess to the other side and impending doom.

An out-and-back trip from Benham East can take the hiker to Benham Falls (.5 mile one way), Dillon Falls (3.5), Lava Island Falls (7) and Meadow Camp (8).

No matter how far you venture, it’s a delightful hike.

And so much closer than the Big Apple.

If You Go:

GETTING THERE: From the heart of Bend, drive about 13 miles south on Highway 97. Turn right at the sign for the Lava Lands Visitor Center. Instead of pulling in at the center (which is closed for the season), continue out Forest Road 9702 to the Benham East picnic area on the Deschutes River.

ROUND-TRIP DISTANCE: From the parking lot, Benham Falls is about a half-mile downstream, Dillon Falls is 3 miles and Lava Island Falls is 7 miles. The interpretive loop trail that goes upstream from the picnic area is less than a half-mile long.

DIFFICULTY: Easy to difficult depending on distance.

ACCESS: Hikers, bikers.

PERMITS: A Northwest Forest Pass is required to park at Benham East.

Jim Witty can be reached at 541-617-7828 or jwitty@bendbulletin.com.