Land Of 100 Wonders Oregon’s Century Drive Offers An Abundance Of Recreation For Visitors To The Cascades

Some say they called it Century Drive because it was the route of a 100-mile motor tour that began and ended in Bend. The modern version of that scenic circuit along the eastern slope of the Cascades, alas, measures only 89 miles in length.

Others insist that the Century name referred to the fact that 100 different lakes could be reached via the road. In fact, there are either fewer than 100 lakes or more than that number, depending upon how far into the Cascade Range you’re willing to hike on the web of trails anchored to the highway in several spots.

But there is no disputing that the piece of Oregon commonly referred to as the Century Drive area is a mother lode of recreational riches, all stuffed into a section of the Cascades roughly 40 miles long by 20 miles at the widest.

During the summer months, it’s a Bermuda shorts triangle into which tens of thousands of people temporarily disappear. It’s a place where they can escape the cares of the workaday world while fishing, hiking, camping, swimming, water-skiing, sailing, canoeing, mountain biking, backpacking, bird-watching, sunbathing, stargazing or retreating into the Three Sisters Wilderness Area.

During its busiest times, such as the Fourth of July holiday weekend, the region is jammed with vacationers. But most of the string of lakes strung along the smoothly paved highway still had room for more visitors.

Davis Lake, the southernmost of the Century Drive Lakes, can be reached via Oregon Highway 58 and the Crescent Cutoff Road to Deschutes National Forest Road 46.

From Davis Lake - known for its fly-fishing for large rainbow trout and its bird-watching opportunities - Highway 46 winds northward around the edges of a huge lava flow and among giant Ponderosa pines.

New lakes and new opportunities appear every few miles. The region features 14 major drive-in lakes and each one has its own special appeal.

Two manmade reservoirs constructed on the Deschutes River to preserve some of the spring runoff for summer irrigation dominate the southern portion of the Century Drive. As far as recreation is concerned, both are primarily fishing lakes.

Think brown trout and you think Wickiup Reservoir. The reservoir’s naturally spawning population of “German Browns” is thick with fish in the five-pound class, and eight-to 14-pounders are not uncommon. The most numerous fish in Wickiup, however, are kokanee, or landlocked salmon.

For those who hanker after trophy rainbow trout or largemouth bass or who prefer to watch osprey do the fishing, Crane Prairie Reservoir offers five square miles of water full of cruising lunker trout and record-size bass.

Like all the lakes in the Century Drive region, Wickiup and Crane Prairie reservoirs have developed campgrounds. Because the demand often outstrips the supply, however, the area around the lakes is full of unofficial campsites that people have created through years of use.

Perhaps the lake that symbolizes the something-for-everybody nature of the area, however, is Elk Lake.

It’s the lake of choice for Bend-area sailboat owners but is also popular for its sandy swimming beaches, cabins, campgrounds and picnic areas, all of which come with great mountain views. The resort rents paddle-boats and mountain bikes. The fishing enthusiasts in the family can catch kokanee and brook trout. The Pacific Crest Trail is only about a mile to the west and trails to several hike-in lakes are nearby.

In the Century Drive area, even the highway itself is used for recreation. Bicyclists frequently take advantage of its smooth, wide-shouldered pavement (since the road closes with the first snowfall, there are no ruts caused by tire studs or chains) to get a good high-elevation workout.

Ironically, visitors who opt to enter the area from Highway 58 rather than from Bend can enjoy all of the above without ever putting a wheel on Century Drive.

Technically, there is still a state highway of that name, but it runs only the 23 miles from Bend to Mount Bachelor. At that point, the state highway becomes a Deschutes County road, one that was officially renamed the Cascade Lakes Highway some years back.

A nice enough name, perhaps, but one that doesn’t begin to describe all of the fun to be found in the land of 100 wonders.