This is a great hill if you are looking to travel up in elevation fro Phill's Trailhead. This is an…read moreuphill only trail, which is nice on those climbs when you are exhausted. You still may find a Jogger or two, but won't need to stop for downhill traffic much. The other reason I love this trail for uphill climbs is the steady elevation gain. Many of the other trials in the Phill's trail complex have a pretty inconsistent elevation gain and loss which is so frustrating. You make all of this progress pedaling uphill, then travel back down to find that you need to make up all that uphill again. There is much less of this with Ben's. This trail will link you over to the forest service road that takes you over buy the Whoops trail, Kent's trail or Phil's trail. So you will have plenty of options at the top depending on the mood you are in. If you have the energy, intermediate skills and a sense of adventure, try taking the Lower Whoops.. its epic! Here are a few links with information on this trail. Central Oregon Trail Alliance http://cotamtb.com/trails/ Moutain Bike Project https://www.mtbproject.com/trail/287080

Anytime I have a friend that wants to learn to mountain bike, I take them to Marvins Garden Trail…read more This trail starts at Phil's Trailhead and ends at the COD Trail. If you really want to inspire yourself or a friend take them to the Lair and witness some gnarly jumps. I pee a little in my pants everytime I look at them. A good portion of the trail has some gradual elevation gain and loss that makes it rideable in the uphill and fun and fast in the downhill. I often fantasize about the Star Wars speeder bike scene when I am the ripping downhill on this section. This is a two lane trial and makes sure you stop for the uphill riders. There are a few jeep roads that cross paths with this trail that give you some options if you're needing a break from the singletrack for some reason. Lastly, there is a steep section in the middle of this trail that will have you huffing and puffing, but you make it, it has one of the best views of Bend from any other mountain bike trail. Overall, if you are looking for a short little exciting ride or have a friend who wants a proper intro to the Phil's Trailhead system, check this trail out for sure. However, if your looking for speed or berms you may want to try out some of the other trails that Central Oregon has for you. Here is a link to a website that has some trail etiquette information. https://bendtrails.org/ Here is a good link to a good map of this trail and some elevation information. https://www.mtbproject.com/trail/26326/marvins-garden Here is a good link to the land management agency that manages this area https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprd3794824.pdf

This is one of the coolest paved bike paths in Bend. I started my journey here on the side of the…read moretrail over by Overturf Park. It started on a gravel road and passes by a dog park. The trail is pretty high in elevation like the name suggests. It has great views of Awbrey and Pilot Butte. It travels through neighborhoods and ends near Phil's trail complex. There are plenty of native habitats that surround this trail. Though there are houses and neighborhoods in the distance, there are some natural aspects of the surrounding ecology. The pavement on this trail is in pretty good condition and the path is wide enough that you really do not have problems passing others. This is a great trail for a bike ride or walk. I will be back again!

Bend has a great many trails to walk and jog and this is one of the best. There are areas to launch…read morea personal non motorized watercraft and plenty of places to sit and watch the natural runs of the river. The Descutes river is so pretty. A great way to spend the day walking and enjoying the natural landscape.

The Deschutes River Trail runs a fair distance, including through the city of Bend. Lucky us - it's…read morea great resource virtually at our doorsteps. On Yelp, reviews for the trail are divided among the various 'reaches', or segments, located within and near the city. For a good overview of the whole trail system, see Chris C's review here: https://www.yelp.com/biz/deschutes-river-trail-system-bend Running from Pioneer Park/First Street rapids to Sawyer Park, the River Run reach is a fine urban trail popular among locals who live along and near its path (which includes me). We obviously can walk to the trail from home but there are parking areas at both ends, although quite limited. At Sawyer Park, you'll find a moderately-sized lot but that park is very popular (with good reason) and likely to have a full lot. At the south end, you'll find space set aside for three or four cars only. After that, it's street parking, which is plentiful. The trail runs right along a fairly placid yet still scenic section of the Deschutes, crossing Mt Washington Drive near the middle. There you will need to walk along the sidewalk a bit before proceeding. It also runs past the River's Edge Golf Course, and here's where I take issue with whatever urban planning went into this section of the trail. The third hole of the golf course is literally divided by the trail. The tee boxes are on one side, the fairway and green on the other. Golfers must hit their tee shots across the trail. For non-golfers, the tee box is where the initial shot of a hole is played, typically with a club meant to deliver the ball a good distance. But golfers are not all PGA pros - sometimes their shots go wild. I know mine do. Here, however, if you shank your tee shot to the left, you may well send your ball on a path directly along the trail. You may well hit someone on the trail. Needless to say, getting hit by a golf ball driven with great force off a tee is not pleasant and can be quite dangerous. Because the trail runs close to the tee box, there is little time to warn trail-goers of an errant missile coming their way. It may not even be a good idea to issue a warning. Yelling 'FORE', for example, may only cause unwary people to look towards the call, thus exposing their faces to the ball. Not everyone knows to cover up and hunker down when they hear that warning. The trail has signs advising people on the trail of the possibility for flying golf balls, but they are inadequate. The tee box is a bit hidden anyway and what are people supposed to do? Run as fast as they can through this section? Hold up shields? The signs are a joke, although better than none, I guess. I've played River's Edge Golf Course. The first time, I was horrified when I arrived at the third tee box. Seriously? You expect me to drive a golf ball over the heads of people on the trail? As it happens, Old Man Winter was still with us and there was no one on the trail, so I went ahead and hit the shot. The second time, too. However, on my third visit to the course, it was a pleasant day and there were people on the trail, including a group of one adult, two kids and a dog. I waited on the tee box for them to walk out of sight and with great trepidation, hit my shot. It went screaming to the left, directly up the trail towards them. I was horrified. It could possibly have hit someone and if I hadn't waited, I'd say there was a very good chance it would have. Plus, the golfer has no way of knowing if a runner or biker is coming down the trail towards them. You hit the shot and then there they are, exposed. It's unsafe and the golf course should be redesigned to make the third hole a par 3 or short 4 with the tee box on the same side of the trail as the fairway and the green. For myself, when I play River's Edge I've vowed not to take that tee shot. I'll just drop my ball at the beginning of the fairway and start from there. Other than that, this section of the Deschutes River Trail is awesome! Very scenic; very relaxing. And being a golfer, I know to listen for the sound of a club striking a ball and look the other way. You should do the same if you come here.

While staying at an AirBnB in Bend, I was out for a morning run and found this cute neighborhood…read morepark. It sits in the middle of two housing communities and is such a peaceful place. There is a playground, walking trail and lots of green grass. Glad I ran right into it (pun intended)!

This review is long overdue. I had never heard of GYROTONICS before I met Kim, but after one…read moresession with her, i felt my body connecting for the first time to simple movements such as walking, posture, and sitting on a chair. The fact that GYROTONICS strengthens you, is an actual hardcore workout, and builds your core without negatively impacting your joints, tendons, and ligaments, is incredible. Kim has gone to great lengths to design a program that works for me and helps with my flexibility and strength. Kim is an amazing teacher who is always present and invests with her heart and soul in the success of her students.

Dry River is a great short hike readily accessible from Bend. Located just east of the Oregon…read moreBadlands, the trail runs east and 'upstream' along a canyon. Dry River Canyon (which is the correct name per BLM) was carved out by repeated floods from an ancient lake, located SE of Horse Ridge. The result is some fairly high walls of lava where you can see volcanic layering. The trail is easy, although you have to step up and around some rocks in places. Junipers abound. To get to the trailhead, turn north off Hwy 20 at the Oregon Badlands sign just before the road steepens. It's about a mile east of the Flatiron Rock trailhead turnoff. This is the road that will take you to the Badlands Rock trailhead if you keep going north. After turning off Hwy 20, take an immediate right into what looks like a gravel yard (which it is). Drive east through the yard - you'll come to a dirt road (there's a sign). The trailhead is about half-mile or so at the end of this road, which is suitable for pretty much any vehicle as long as you pick you way through some nasty tire-killing rocks in spots. Note that Dry River Canyon is closed between Feb 1 and Aug 31 to protect peregrine falcon nesting, unless the BLM opens it earlier.

Great scenery and hiking! We really enjoyed this park and all the history, colors of the hills and…read morehiking. It's a fun day trip from Bend, Oregon. The trails are easy to slightly moderate with views that will wow you around every curve. The facilities are limited so bring your water, lunch and probably some toilet paper!

Bend has many great hiking opportunities what with the Cascades range to the west and the Oregon…read morecentral volcanic area to the east. One of these is the Oregon Badlands Wilderness Area, located about 20 miles east off Highway 20. The Badlands is a 30,000 acre tract of BLM land that offers several trails that will take you into scenic lava formations and ancient junipers. It's a wilderness, so there isn't much out there except that, which is cool. There are a bunch of larger lava outcrops in the interior that you can hike to, including the Flatiron Rock. The Flatiron is accessed via a ~3 mile mostly flat easy trail from a trailhead right off Hwy 20. Or you can get to it from the Badlands Rock trailhead located off a short road north of Hwy 20. Google Maps will show all you need to know in terms of trail locations. It's right outside Bend. Go. Hike.