Leaving Bend, we headed south towards Crater Lake and rode the Dread and Terror section of the North Umpqua Trail (NUT). Along the trail we were reminded of home–steep ups, slippery rocks, bench cuts–but this trail has pretty extreme exposure along the ten or so miles of bench, numerous waterfalls, giant trees and a million shades of green. What a great ride. I would recommend it over Mckenzie just because it has more technical interest. Umpqua’s Last Resort was our stop for the night and you could easily stay there for three days of riding and a day of rafting (maybe next year).
werelivingthedream 
Nice post Paula! Susie and I traveled that same route from Bend down to Medford, OR this summer. You’ve been in some of our favorite areas,
and making us want to go back! Enjoy. Have been doing quite a bit of riding around here lately. Have had some great weather but it’s about to transition now. Temps supposed to be in the teens tonight.
Best regards to you and Butch.
Jeff
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