Whychus Canyon Preserve

Whychus Canyon Preserve protects four miles of Whychus Creek providing high quality habitat for the reintroduction of salmon and steelhead to the upper Deschutes basin. The Preserve is home to outstanding canyon scenery and a host of wildlife species: redband trout, mule deer, rocky mountain elk, golden eagles, ash-throated flycatchers, and spotted bats to name a few.

Whychus Canyon Preserve connects on the northern end with privately-owned and Land Trust protected Rimrock Ranch. This means six miles of Whychus Creek and 2,053 acres of surrounding land are conserved forever. Many thanks to our funders!

 

The Land Trust manages Whychus Canyon Preserve to protect and, where necessary, restore fish and wildlife habitat. Since acquiring the Preserve in 2010, the Land Trust has completed a variety of restoration projects including:

 

• Forest restoration. Initial restoration efforts at Whychus Canyon Preserve have focused on restoring the native forests of the Preserve to a healthy, open ponderosa pine and juniper savanna that provides high quality wildlife habitat and helps reduce fire risk. Learn more about how thinning projects benefit aspen and ponderosa pine.
• Stream restoration. We are currently working with our restoration partners to restore six miles of Whychus Creek (Whychus Canyon Preserve downstream through Rimrock Ranch). Learn more about the creek restoration.
• Managing weeds. Noxious weeds are a reality at all Land Trust protected lands. If they are not actively managed they compromise healthy native plant communities. Weed management is currently focused in the stream restoration project area.

Whychus Canyon Preserve is accessed via the Goodrich Road trailhead. The Preserve is open to the public during daylight hours year-round. See our suggested routes for the Preserve.

Whychus Canyon Preserve offers the following amenities:

• Informational kiosk
• Parking area
• 7+ miles of hiking trails
• Santiam Wagon Road Interpretive Trail
• Scenic overlooks
• Benches

There is no drinking water or no trash removal services. Snow may block access to the Preserve in the winter.

Preserve guidelines

Use of Whychus Canyon Preserve is conditional upon following these and any other posted rules:

• Dogs must be kept on leash at ALL TIMES. Please clean up after your pet.
  
• Pedestrian travel only: no bike, horse, or motorized vehicle use.
• Stay on roads and trails.
• Removal or disturbance of plants, wildlife, and historical artifacts is prohibited. 
• Catch and release fishing with barbless hooks is permitted subject to applicable state regulations.
• No hunting, camping, campfires, or smoking.
• Commercial use and private events are prohibited.

Please note: Whychus Canyon Preserve is private property owned by Deschutes Land Trust. Your use of the property is conditional upon these and any other posted rules. Preserve users failing to observe posted rules are trespassing and subject to applicable laws and penalties. Visitors to the Preserve may encounter risks associated with terrain, wildlife, and weather. Please exercise appropriate caution: the Deschutes Land Trust is not liable for injuries to Preserve visitors.

 

Whychus Canyon Preserve is located northeast of Sisters, Oregon. Access to the Preserve is via the Goodrich Road Trailhead. Detailed driving directions, including downloadable PDFs, can be found below.

Trail maps: View the trail map and route suggestions for Whychus Canyon Preserve (in English or en Español) or download a georeferenced map (in English or en Español) for use in mapping apps.

The map below shows the location of Whychus Canyon Preserve along with other Land Trust conserved lands.

 

Driving directions to Whychus Canyon Preserve:

Please note: all public access to Whychus Canyon Preserve is via the Goodrich Road entrance to the Preserve.

Whychus Canyon Preserve Trailhead Coordinates (UTM NAD83): 623319, 4910477
Download the driving directions in English and en Español.

From Sisters:
Turn east from Sisters on Hwy 126 for approximately 5.4 miles. Turn left onto Goodrich Road. Follow Goodrich Road for 1.5 miles until the paved road begins to curve sharply to the right. Continue straight at the curve onto a gravel road and follow this road 1.3 miles north to a split in the road. You’ll see the Whychus Canyon Preserve welcome sign straight ahead. Continue north for another 0.4 miles to the kiosk and parking area.

From Hwy 126 (Redmond, Madras, Prineville):
Turn right onto Goodrich Road. Follow Goodrich Road for 1.5 miles until the paved road begins to curve sharply to the right. Continue straight at the curve onto a gravel road and follow this road 1.3 miles north to a split in the road. You’ll see the Whychus Canyon Preserve welcome sign straight ahead. Continue north for another 0.4 miles to the kiosk and parking area.

From Hwy 20 (Bend, La Pine, Sunriver):
Take Hwy 20 towards Sisters for approximately 13 miles. Turn right on Fryrear Road and continue 5.5 miles to the intersection with Hwy 126. Turn left onto Hwy 126 for 1 mile, then right onto Goodrich Road. Follow Goodrich Road for 1.5 miles until the paved road begins to curve sharply to the right. Continue straight at the curve onto a gravel road and follow this road 1.3 miles north to a split in the road. You’ll see the Whychus Canyon Preserve welcome sign straight ahead. Continue north for another 0.4 miles to the kiosk and parking area.

From time immemorial, Native Americans, including the Warm Springs, Wasco, and Paiute tribes, lived in this region or visited it to hunt, fish, gather foods, and trade. Whychus Canyon Preserve is within the lands ceded to the United States in the Treaty with the Tribes of Middle Oregon in 1855. The bands that signed the 1855 Treaty moved onto to the Warm Springs Reservation and are known as the Wasco and Warm Springs tribes. Paiute people began settling on the Warm Springs Reservation in 1879 and, along with the Wasco and Warm Springs tribes, now comprise the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon. The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, by virtue of the Treaty of 1855, have legal rights to harvest and manage wildlife and, by implication, the right to habitats suitable to support wildlife populations. The Land Trust considers the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs an important partner in management and restoration of the property.

The first Euro-Americans began to arrive in Central Oregon in the 1800s as trappers, explorers, and survey crews began mapping the region. In 1843 westward migration began along the Oregon Trail as the federal government forcibly re-settled Native Americans and offered western lands to Euro-Americans. In 1865, the Santiam Wagon Road was completed, connecting the Willamette Valley to Central Oregon and bringing even more settlement to the region. A key settlement in the vicinity of Rimrock Ranch was Hindman Station at nearby Camp Polk Meadow. Hindman Station was a stopping place for travelers on the Santiam Wagon between 1868-1885.

Part of land that is now known as Whychus Canyon Preserve was likely first homesteaded by Nathan H. Kimsey in 1925. The Land Trust purchased and protected Whychus Canyon Preserve in 2010.