Lower Whychus Creek offers an all-season hike

As our weather becomes more wintry and hiking opportunities continue to dwindle, the Lower Whychus Creek trail comes to mind as an excellent hike for almost any time of the year. Also, if you choose to hike this popular local trail in the next ten days, your hike will be four miles shorter than if you wait until December!

Effective December 1 through March 31, the access road to that corner of the Crooked River National Grassland is closed to motor vehicles. That doesn't mean you can't hike it; it just means that you will have to hoof it two miles from the gate to reach the creek. This closure could become permanent, however, if the proposed wilderness in that area were ever established.

The trail that leads downstream from the road crossing is a not-very-well-kept local secret. "Officially," it's not a trail at all, since it's not maintained by the BLM or Forest Service and is referred to as an "unofficial route." Unofficially, however, it's a pretty good trail; although it does become somewhat faint in spots as it approaches the Alder Springs crossing.

Although it's longer than the traditional Alder Springs Trail, this route has the advantage of not getting your feet wet, since it's entirely on the west side of Whychus Creek. Last week, we took advantage of a rare November sunny day to enjoy the area.

We parked just short of the creek ford and followed the trail downstream through a walk-in "dispersed" camping site. There, multiple paths consolidate into a well-defined trail that generally takes the "high road" above the creek. The "low road" nearer the creek becomes hemmed in by canyon walls and is often choked with brush. I've hiked down there, too; and the going can be pretty rough at water level.

This hike, however, is atop the rim and has clear sailing. Although there are some significant ups and downs along the way, the contour of the land is generally flat as the creek winds its way gently downhill. Shortly after leaving the camping area, we passed a temporary Forest Service sign emphasizing the "undesignated" aspect of this route and exhorting users to keep human impact to a minimum.

Beautiful views are afforded of the creek below, and the thick streamside vegetation is a sharp contrast to the more arid zone above. Dense alder thickets and even the occasional Douglas fir can be seen in the canyon below. Tall ponderosa pines rise above the rock canyon walls, so the hiker is often at eye level with the treetops.

Except in a few spots, the trail tends to stay away from the canyon rim; but there are numerous access points where it is possible to stand on the very edge of the vertical rock cliffs. So, caution should be exercised; and keep a close eye on children and pets.

Some of these clifftop viewpoints make perfect spots to stop for a rest or lunch break and enjoy the beauty of the stream below. Take time along these stretches to imagine the possibility of salmon and steelhead fighting their way upstream through this remote section of Whychus Creek. If biologists' expectations are met, that could be happening anytime now.

As the trail nears Alder Springs, it passes under some CEC power lines. All this area is rattlesnake country, but I saw a particularly large one near here a couple of years ago. This late in the year, however, the rattlers are more likely to be holed up; but it's always a good idea to be on the alert, especially on unseasonably warm days. Even though the temperatures were in the forties and low fifties for our outing last week, the November sun soon had us peeling off extra layers of clothing.

Some of the most spectacular views of the canyon are seen when the northeasterly bound creek makes some sharp bends. These breaks in the contour of the land provide striking opportunities for unique views down into some of the most scenic parts of the canyon.

As the trail continues to follow the stream north, it enters last year's 1,600-acre Alder Springs Fire. Generally, the relatively sparse vegetation and wide spacing of the juniper trees in the area resulted in a fire intensity that, for the most part, did not burn hot enough to completely sterilize the earth. Still, many juniper trees were burned and killed; but a few escaped entirely, and others were partially burned and may survive.

Sadly, many of the beautiful old orange-barked, creekside ponderosa pines on the canyon floor were killed by the fire; although more than a few survived, in a mosaic pattern, as the fire skipped over some areas.

Fire damage is quite apparent near the "Old Bridge" site, and the burned landscape approaches to within a few yards of the site. The fire crossed to the east side of the stream just a little farther downstream. It is in that area where the canyon floor experienced the most severe fire damage.

The distance from the road crossing to the Alder Springs trail crossing isn't much more than about 3.5 miles; although, frankly, it seems longer. From that point, the distance to where Whychus Creek flows into the Deschutes River is an additional 1.5 miles. Therefore, a round-trip to the Alder Springs crossing is about 7 miles, and a round trip to the mouth of the creek is about 10. Those distances increase to 11 and 14, however, between December 1 and March 31.

The Alder Springs end of the trail is also marked by one of those semi-official signs emphasizing the unofficial nature of this route. Considering the local popularity of the trail, it seems a peculiar notion to foster. We even encountered a party of eight from a hiking club in Bend nefariously enjoying the trail.

To reach the Whychus Creek road crossing, take Locust Street (Camp Polk Road) 3.1 miles north from East Cascade Ave. There it makes a sharp right turn, but stay straight onto Wilt Road until the pavement ends 2.5 miles later. Continue straight on the good gravel road for another 6.4 miles (2.4 miles beyond Rimrock Ranch). A sharp turnoff to the right is unmarked; but the seasonal closure gate is visible a short distance down that side road, along with the conditional "Closed to Motor Vehicles" sign. This road is a bit rough, but the Bend group negotiated it in passenger vehicles.