My son and daughter-in-law told us about this beautiful river fifteen miles northwest of Sisters, Oregon, which is 22 miles northwest of Bend. It was fun driving out into the middle of nowhere—not your typical tourist destination, for sure, which is what we like.
First we hiked to Sugar Springs, water bubbling out of a basalt bank into the river about five miles downstream of the headwaters. The water in that area is swift, deep, and an incredible shade of teal blue. Rainbow trout are large and plentiful, grown fat and confident in the comfort of their catch-and-release world.
Then we went in search of the headwaters. The headwaters, also known as Metolius Springs, is actually two sets of springs that surface at the base of Black Butte. They erupt with such force that they quickly broaden to form a wide, swiftly flowing river—one of the largest spring-fed rivers in the United States—that eventually flows into the mighty Deschutes River. Beautiful country, this.
Sugar Springs on the Metolius River
the headwaters of the Metolius
a rock stuck in tree roots
on the banks of the river
Camp Sherman store near the headwaters
cool metal sculpture just east of Sisters
I’d missed this one! My siblings spend a week together every year (usually June) at Black Butte Resort, renting usually two houses. Bill and I have hiked and bird-watched all over the Metolius area over the years. It really is spectacular. The resort has been a great place to get together, as we have golfers, readers, swimmers, hikers etc and everyone can do what they prefer during the day, and at night we take turns cooking dinner for the group and reminiscing and catching up.
That’s good to know about Black Butte Resort. I’ll have to remember it for future Fletcher reunions. Your family and mine have similar interests in activities at reunions, including taking turns cooking for the group. Marcus and I fell in love with the Bend area and will definitely go back. We even talked about moving there, at one point. You never know….