Bessie Butte and Horse Butte, Deschutes National Forest, Oregon

After a lot of winter desert riding I am always happy to get into the national forest for a change.
This is a short but scenic ride to the top of Bessie Butte and back, but the Horse Butte area has many other trails to choose from.

Riding back down Bessie Butte.

The most straightforward way to get there, and without having to drive on a bouncy gravel road is: From Bend take Hwy 20 east towards Burns for one mile, take a right on Ward Rd, follow it 1.3 miles until it comes to a T, then take the left to stay on Ward. Continue another 2 miles then turn right on Billadeau Rd. When Billadeau crosses over Arnold Market Rd. the name changes to Horse Butte Rd. After 3.2 miles the pavement ends, and you will have several options for parking.

Immediately on the right there is a spot right next to Horse Butte, which is a bright red cinder cone. I usually park there, but on this particular day there was someone in the way, so I continued on gravel road 1815 for half a mile and then took a right on Rd. 800 at the sign for Horse Butte TH. There are several pullouts to choose from, or you can continue to the actual trailhead which is less than half a mile further. However the road gets a little more bumpy and washed out, so most people park along Rd 800. I parked in a large pullout on the right, a trail runs directly behind this to the trailhead or you can just ride down the road.

Trailhead sign on Rd 1815.

One of the parking areas, Horse Butte is behind me.

From the trailhead there is a sign for Swamp Wells Trail, follow this, and in not too long you will come to a junction sign, stay straight, it will be marked saying 2 miles to Bessie Butte. Don't be surprised if you hear gunshots while riding, there are two other buttes in the area, Cabin Butte and Coyote Butte that are very popular for shooting, I can say that in all the years I have ridden in this area, I have never NOT heard shooting, no matter the day, or time of year. However the trail systems are not that close to the buttes so it is more of an annoyance than a major safety issue.

Trailhead sign.

On the Swamp Wells Trail.

You will cross a couple of dirt roads along the way and then you will also cross paved China Hat Rd. The next junction is straight ahead and you will follow the trail to the right, to your destination which is in plain sight at this point.

Bessie Butte.

Climb up the butte and enjoy the views!

The trail up Bessie Butte.

You can ride around on top for a while. I didn't stay up there as long as I might normally, it was an especially gusty day and I was almost getting blown off my horse.

Mt. Bachelor from Bessie Butte.

On top of Bessie Butte.

Looking south towards Swamp Wells Horse Camp from Bessie Butte.

Eastern view of Cabin and Coyote Buttes.

Head back down the hill and retrace your steps back to your truck for an 8 mile total ride.

Since I am more of a stay out on the trail all day kind of girl, I continued on for a large loop of my own making, following some other trails and some dirt roads until I got to Boyd Cave. Here you can see for miles, due to most trees having been burned in a fire back in 1996. I have been into Boyd Cave a couple of times, it is a fun adventure to climb down and walk along the cave floor for half a mile. Near the end it narrows to the point where you have to get on your stomach and army crawl through to the next section. Not recommended for anyone who is claustrophobic!

Following roads to the south to do a big loop.

Snack time.

The entrance to Boyd Cave.

I continued on to Skeleton Cave, which is gated and closed to the general public, due to vandalism, although there are tours of the cave that occur seasonally. I then returned to my truck from there.

The road into Skeleton Cave.

Skeleton Cave.

Skeleton Cave is closed to the public.

This area is popular with cyclists, so a lot of times if faced with the choice of the actual trail or some of the two tracks that are out there, I will stay off the trails for two reasons, to avoid the cyclists, and I am apparently low on patience and would rather cut a straighter route to my destinations. A lot of these trails meander around quite a bit, and it takes three times longer to get anywhere on them!

On one of the two tracks, Horse Butte in the distance.

All of these other areas ( to Skeleton, Boyd Caves and beyond ) can be accessed from the same parking area as the Bessie Butte ride. The different trails are marked and numbered and the signs have mileage on them, so it is a good place to just get out and explore. There are even several different ways to ride all the way to Swamp Wells Horse Camp. Although it is not accessible quite yet at this time of year, since there is still snow up there, it is a good one to ride to, or start camping at, early in the season.

Another place you can ride to is Arnold Ice Cave.

Arnold Ice Cave, is still icy since the temperatures coming from underground keep it from melting.

Happy Trails!

GPS COORDINATES TO HORSE BUTTE