Central Oregon Activities

Scenic Tours - Hiking, Canoeing, Cave Tours
Enjoy hiking, walking, canoeing, caving, and snowshoeing through Central Oregon’s Scenic environment.  Wanderlust Tours naturalist guides provide vibrant interpretation on ecology, geology, animal tracking, and history.  Guided canoe trips on the Cascade Lakes, snowshoe tours in the snowy mountain forest, cave tours year round, and volcano tours into the crater of a nearby volcano.  All tours are half-day (moonlight canoe and snowshoe trips available).  No experience necessary for any tours - great for all ages.  Dogs welcome on specific tours.  800-962-2862

ATV – Four Wheelers, Jet Skis, Snowmobiles, & Scooters

Central Oregon Adventures offers two hour, four hour, and sunset tours, as well as rentals.  Call for reservations.  541-593-8887

♦  Guests of Bennington Properties receive 10% Off (excludes holidays and Saturdays).

Cog Wild Bicycle Tours

Join Cog Wild Bicycle Tours one on of their many mountain bike tours for beginner to advanced riders. Central Oregon has hundreds of miles of trails for riders of all levels. Enjoy artisan lunches and snacks in amazing scenery. Bring the whole family for a fun, scary-free adventure!  info@cogwild.com  (866) 610-4822

Hiking

Your options are endless.   Explore the Deschutes National Forest on your own or try a guided tour.  Wanderlust Tours offers guided tours with vibrant interpretation on ecology, geology, animal tracking, and history.  No experience necessary for any tours—great for all ages!  Dogs welcome on specific tours.  800-962-2862

Golfing

If you love to golf, then Sunriver is the right place for you.  With nearly 30 world class golf courses, Central Oregon is ranked as one of the top Golf Destinations in the world.  Golf right out your back door on Sunriver's two premier golf courses, or travel 15 to 30 minutes and enjoy the incredible courses that Bend and LaPine have to offer. 

Golf discounts available for Guests of Bennington Properties.

Paulina Plunge
The Paulina Plunge trip starts with a smooth dirt trail mountain bike ride (all down hill) along a shimmering mountain stream.  Along the way you will visit six waterfalls as well as two safe, natural water slides.  The trip ends with a deli lunch.  Fun for the whole family!  (800) 296-0562

Rafting (Whitewater)

Sunriver and Central Oregon have become the most popular white water rafting destination in the country.  With the Deschutes River, McKenzie River, and North Umpqua River all right here in Central Oregon, there is something for everyone.  Family-oriented guided tours available.  Call for reservations.  Sun Country Tours  541-593-2161

Scenic Flights
Discover Central Oregon from the Air! See spectacular views while experiencing the exhilaration of flight. Choose from aerial tours of the Central Oregon Cascades including the Three Sisters, Mt. Bachelor, Cascade Lakes, and Paulina Peak-Newberry Crater or schedule a chartered aerial scenic tour to Crater Lake National Park.  Flights originate from either Sunriver Resort or Bend Municipal Airports. Pick a day and time for your very own scenic tour seven days a week.  Professional Air  541-388-0019

Sisters
Located approximately 20 miles west of Bend on Highway 20 is the town of Sisters.  Known for its shopping and annual events such as the Sisters Rodeo and Sisters Quilt Show, Sisters has become a popular daytime destination.  This charming 1880s style western town is nestled near the beautiful Three Sisters mountains.  Antiques, artwork, clothing, and more will be found in the many quaint shops that make up this small western town.

Smith Rock State Park
Located approximately 45 miles north of Sunriver, Smith Rock State Park is internationally known as a premier rock-climbing area.  Several outfits give climbing tours and lessons at the park.  Park admission fee required and dogs must be on a leash.  Open Daily.  If rock climbing is not your thing, there are also miles of hiking and mountain biking trails that run along the Crooked River which creates the wonderfully beautiful winding canyons the park is known for.  9241 NE Crooked River Drive, Terrebonne.   541-548-7501

Museum at Warm Springs
About a two hour drive north of Sunriver on the Warm Springs Reservation is a 27,000 square foot museum.  Housing the largest collection of artifacts from a single tribe, this museum sits along a creek offshoot of the Deschutes River.  Enjoy one of many traditional singing and drumming concerts put on by representatives of each of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.  2189 Highway 26, Warm Springs Reservation.  541-553-3331

Crater Lake National Park
If you are interested in an all day expedition, drive south on Highway 97 to Crater Lake National Park.  This incredible blue lake sits in the crater of Mount Mazama, an ancient volcano which blew its top thousands of years ago.  The crater gradually filled with rainwater and snowmelt, forming the lake with no natural inlet or outlet, resulting in the intense blue color of the water.  In the summer months, you can take a guided boat ride out to Wizard Island or hike one of the many trails around the rim.  In the winter, when the park in only accessible via the east entrance, cross-country skiers and snowshoers delight in the views of the snowy lake and its surroundings.  Stop in and enjoy a sumptuous meal at the recently restored historic Crater Lake Lodge. 541-594-2211

Lava Lands Visitor Center
The Lava Lands Visitor Center is the interpretive hub for Newberry National Volcanic Monument and is located just off U.S. Hwy. 97, 3 miles north of Sunriver. Lava Lands offers nature walks, interpretive programs, visitor information, displays on geology, volcanology and the cultural history of Central Oregon. A small book shop offers books on the Central Oregon area.  Behind the Visitor Center there are two self guided interpretive trails, to explore at your own pace. One, the Trail of Molten Land, meanders over the 7000 year-old lava flow from Lava Butte, the imposing cinder cone behind the Visitor Center. The other, Trail of the Wispering Pines, wanders through a young ponderosa pine forest.

Lava River Cave
The scarcity and spaciousness of Central Oregon's Lava Lands create an area of striking beauty both above and below ground. Large areas are covered by lava flows. These rivers of rock are basalt, a molten lava that spreads quickly and sometimes flowed up to seventy miles. Great tunnels wind through many of these flows and suggest that awesome forces of nature were once at work. These ancient lava tunnels (called tubes) are one of the area's most interesting secrets.  Lava River Cave is one example of these ancient lava tunnels. The cave is part of Newberry National Volcanic Monument, which is managed by the U.S. Forest Service.  The cave temperature is a constant 42 degrees, so wear warm clothing. The one mile cave is one of the longest lava tubes in Oregon.  Located one mile south of Lava Lands Visitor Center.

Newberry National Volcanic Monument
Newberry National Volcanic Monument is a recreational playground for thousands of visitors each year. Newberry Crater holds two alpine lakes, East and Paulina, which are home to trophy-size brown and rainbow trout, as well as kokanee and Atlantic salmon. Seven campgrounds in the Crater, offer shoreline camping, boat ramps, sanitary facilities, group camping, and a horse camp with equestrian trails. In the winter, the Crater is a popular destination for both snowmobilers and cross-country skiers. Miles of trails run through the Monument, offering visitors year round opportunities for hiking and exploring. Hiking trails, include the popular Peter Skene Ogden National Recreation Trail and other trails lead to major lava flows and around portions of the crater rim. The northwest border of the Monument is the Wild and Scenic Deschutes River, where river rafters and kayakers bounce through white-water rapids formed by narrow channels carved through the lava. A wildlife refuge already exists within the caldera rim, and it will continue to be managed by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.  Head south on Highway 97 from Sunriver toward La Pine and look for the signs to Newberry Crater.  541-536-8802

Cascade Lakes Highway
Begin in Sunriver and strike out on a breathtaking 87-mile loop that leads past Mt. Bachelor and the alpine lakes of Central Oregon, with spectacular panoramas and inviting stops along the way. Designated a National Scenic Byway by the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, the Cascade Lakes Highway is open all summer. But from November through May, it's closed beyond Mt. Bachelor due to snow.  Some of the lakes that you will encounter include Todd Lake, Sparks Lake, Cultus Lake, and Crane Prairie Reservoir. As you can imagine, this is an angler's paradise. All fishing types can spend hours at the banks of these lakes, fishing for Atlantic salmon and other freshwater fish. Waterfowl and many species of plants thrive here as well.  Whether you want to hike, bike, fish, boat, swim or water-ski, your are sure to find just the right spot.  Elk and Cultus Lakes are two of the most popular for swimming and boating, with Crane Prairie and Wickiup Reservoirs being noted for their exceptional fishing.