Redmond mountain bikers now have even fewer reasons to drive to the Deschutes National Forest to stage trail rides. The riding opportunities west of town on Bureau of Land Management land is now more streamlined and connected — by the tune of 11.5 additional miles.
In March, the Source reported that the Central Oregon Trail Alliance finished tamping down almost a dozen trails that belong to the Cascade View and Cline Buttes trail system. There, sections owned by the Bureau of Land Management are sandwiched between private and Department of State acreages — and a BLM-managed bald eagle nest, to boot. With the trail revamp, COTA and Oregon Equestrian Trails, both nonprofits charged with trail maintenance for mountain bikers, hikers and horse riders, respectively, hope to shore up that discord.
“We’re looking at trail connectivity,” says Alex Brieger, COTA’s trails program director. “And then making sure that in perpetuity on the BLM-specific land, that we will always have access to get people to where they want to go” without entering neighboring private properties.
A recent example of inter-recreator collaboration is found at Maston Trail Complex, where COTA and OET partnered in recent years to establish and maintain dedicated horse trails separate, yet often in tandem with, those for mountain biking and hiking.
Brieger is pleased with COTA Redmond chapter’s volunteer trail building, mostly by hand. BLM approved the building of these trails after conducting an environmental assessment in 2012, Brieger said, yet the lapsed time period required the agency to make a National Environmental Policy Act adequacy decision. Thereafter, COTA was granted the green light.
The Cascade View system offers more blue-level riding — think rocky, technical sections without too much steep stuff. Several grants helped COTA hire some seasonal trail builders. Paul Thomasberg, a former professional mountain biker and owner of trail-building company Terra Velo, for example, helped machine-build Crossfire, a climbing trail.
The intention there, Brieger explained, is to steer folks away from what’s known as the FAA road, which is gravel and almost entirely on property owned by the Thornburgh Resort.
COTA subsequently completed Whiptail, Hummingbird, Rattler and Bull Snake, which cover about 6 miles.
“The goal is to build a trail that allows people to climb to the top with a really good grade that would make it more comfortable to ride,” Brieger said. “It’s not a very narrow single track, so if you wander a little bit, you’re not going to drop your front wheel off the trail. It’s definitely steep up there.”
A new trail called Bull Snake connects Cascade View to Cline Buttes by tying into Cover Charge. New trails at Cline Buttes, which count 6 miles, include Chainbreak, Positive Vibrations, Return Policy, DH3 re-route, Legal Eagle — the new trail to afford those federally-protected raptors some privacy — and Hummingbird.
“That trail is more of a single-track climbing trail, but it connects the Eagle Crest community to the top of the Butte, tying into Crossfire at the top,” Brieger said.
Some folks do better with directions by reading them on a map. COTA offers trail write-ups on its website, along with maps courtesy of Bend Trails. Yet now that beloved Bend Trails, a nonprofit online hub of trail intel, will go off-line June 1, Trailforks will be the other online option for rider-generated trail intel.
On a recent riding — err, newsgathering trip — to Cascade View trailhead, this reporter was reminded of the High Desert’s wind-swept serenity. Parking in a nearly empty lot, I only noticed two other vehicles.
I was happy to explore the Cascade View trails. For its cross-country-style riding opportunities — Cascade View spoke to me; I’d also brought my gravel bike, which is a good litmus test of rideability of cross-country trails.
Near a pit toilet, new signage, installed by COTA, helped me gather my surroundings. Yes to bikes; no to horses and e-bikes. (Unlike the Deschutes National Forest Service, e-bikes are not allowed on BLM land. Yet the Redmond Radlands, which is managed by Redmond Area Park and Recreation District, is a go-to for class-1 e-bike afficionados.)
Back at Cascade View, I eased my way onto Bluebelly Stem rolling down a slight hill and settling into the trail — an enjoyable mix of hard-packed yet sometimes soupy sand. Punctuated with sharp lava rock, the trail requires nimble handling. Throughout the ride, a cool breeze rustled juniper boughs while lizards scuttled from shady place to shady place, making zigzags on the trail. Vantage points along the taller sections rewarded pit stops with blue-bird views of the Cascade Range. A long, bushy cloud clung to Three Finger Jack like a shawl. Down trail, several gates required dismounts and careful re-attachments of the various dead bolt and chain locking systems. In less than two hours I’d linked up Bluebelly Stem, Whiptail, portions of the Bluebelly Loop, Rattler and Hummingbird.
Riding the Cline Buttes and Cascade View trail system is a popular destination for winter riding, when the Deschutes National Forest’s lower trails may be too muddy to ride. Yet despite the moon dust in sections, these trails offer a spring setting that feels downright tranquil compared to the high rider volume that packs through Phil’s lower trails. On a Sunday afternoon, respite from the crowds was a welcome change of pace.
This article appears in the Source May 14, 2026.
MAKE LOCAL JOURNALISM HAPPEN
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
