Why This Trip Rocks
- Premier Home Base: 4-night stay in a modern condo with private garage & Cascade views.
- Three Distinct Terrain Zones: lava domes at Cline Buttes, volcanic rim panoramas at Crater Lake, and 11,000-acre Christmas Valley Sand Dunes.
- Turn-Key Jeeps: 3 lifted, locker-equipped 4×4 with radios, recovery gear & permits.
- All-Inclusive Days: hot breakfasts in-condo, gourmet trail lunches, pro guides & comms.
- Bend After Dark: 30+ breweries, live-music patios, riverfront trails, art walk & boutique shopping.
Three radically different landscapes—lava ledges, pine forests, and rolling dunes—served up in one long-weekend throttle-fest.
Bend Warm-Up
Arrive at Redmond, settle into your Mill Quarter condo, pop a welcome brew, then wander the Deschutes River promenade for an instant hit of Bend’s laid-back vibe and legendary tap-list.
Mid-Day Action
Fly into Redmond (RDM) • 25-min shuttle to Mill Quarter condo • Welcome Happy Hour & orientation
Evening in Bend
Group toast at Deschutes Brewery; explore Old Mill fire-pit patios
Cline Buttes: “Lava Ledges & Cascade Vistas”
Fire up the CampDads Jeeps for Cline Buttes: basalt ledges, sandy washes, and summit panoramas that stretch from Mt. Bachelor to Smith Rock. Cap the day with a victory pint on Bend’s award-winning Ale Trail.
Morning
Hearty breakfast tacos, gear check
Mid-Day Action
Crawl basalt ledges, weave sandy washes & summit viewpoints (89 mi route)
Picnic lunch
Strap in for a technical playground carved out of 7-million-year-old basalt. We’ll snake through ancient juniper groves, drop into sandy washes, then test lockers on Trail #34, the rock-crawl made famous in Peterson’s Ultimate Adventure. Summit ridgelines reward us with 360° views of the Three Sisters and Mt. Bachelor before we descend to the North Barr Play Area for a final adrenaline hit.
Points of Interest en-route:
- Eagle Rock overlook
- North Barr staging loop
- petroglyph boulder field
- Deschutes River canyon pull-off.
Evening in Bend
Free time → craft-beer “Ale Trail” passport or whiskey tasting • Dinner at 10 Barrel Brewing
Crater Lake “Blue Abyss” + Crescent Backroads
We’ll Roll south for a jaw-drop reveal at Crater Lake Rim Village—the caldera’s electric blues framed by snowdrifts and volcanoes on the horizon. We’ll work the overlooks (Discovery Point, Watchman—conditions permitting) and grab iconic shots of Wizard Island and Phantom Ship.
Morning
Sunrise coffee + local pastries
Mid-Day Action
Caldera rim circuit: electric-blue overlooks, short rim walks, snow play/photo ops (conditions permitting)
Trail-side lunch
A morning climb to Rim Village sets up jaw-dropping views across the caldera. We’ll work the classic overlooks—Discovery Point and Watchman when accessible—for Wizard Island and Phantom Ship photo ops, then roll south toward Crescent Lake. On the return, we’ll detour onto scenic forest backroads of pumice and sand near Crescent for an easy 4×4 sampler, with an optional cold dip along the lakeshore before cruising back to Bend.
Points of Interest en-route:
- Rim Village Overlook
- Discovery Point (Wizard Island vistas)
- Watchman Viewpoint (conditions dependent)
- Phantom Ship pullout
- Crescent Lake shoreline & Guard Station
- Three Trails OHV area
Evening in Bend
Downtown Bend: surf the river wave, browse local shops • Farm-to-table dinner at Wild Rose Thai
Christmas Valley Sand Dunes: “Oregon’s Inland Sahara”
Charge Oregon’s biggest inland dunes at Christmas Valley—8,900 open acres of steep bowls and soft-sand playgrounds, plus a quick slot-canyon detour at Crack-in-the-Ground. Celebrate with a fireside farewell feast back in Bend.
Morning
Early grab-&-go breakfast burritos • 90-min scenic drive SE
Mid-Day Action
Rip 60-ft dune bowls, sand-sail the flats, photo stop at Crack-in-the-Ground
Gourmet wrap & fruit lunch
Shift to low-range and wide-open throttle: 8,900 acres of shifting dune bowls—some 60 ft tall—await our convoy. We’ll carve S-curves across wind-rippled ridges, climb the Dragon’s Back spine for panoramic selfies, then surf downhill into soft-sand valleys that feel a world away from Bend’s pines.
After lunch, a short hop delivers us to the volcanic slot canyon Crack-in-the-Ground for a desert-cooling hike, with optional detours to the rare Lost Forest ponderosa stand or fossil-rich Fossil Lake.
Evening in Bend
Return to Bend • Farewell feast & fire-side s’mores at Sunriver Brewing
Wheels Up
Pancake bar, parting swag, and a short shuttle to RDM—heading home with cameras full, clothes dusty, and stories for days.
Morning
Pancake bar & good-bye swag • Check-out 10 AM
Mid-Day Action
Airport Shuttle