Gravel cycling is all about the adventure, combining both road and mountain biking with some incredible views, less traffic, and better routes on unpaved roads. If you’re looking to change-up your cycling game with new experiences, unexpected terrain and quiet roads, try your luck at one of the fastest growing niches in cycling and take your bike off-road with gravel riding in Central Oregon. The Cascades Gravel Scenic Bikeway is Oregon’s first (and only) scenic gravel bikeway program, giving gravel riders vetted routes spanning every category and skill levels.

The Cascades Gravel Scenic Bikeway is comprised of six different routes, ranging from shorter and flatter beginner-level rides, to more technical and longer gravel and mixed-surface rides. To make this possible, Visit Bend has partnered with Dirty Freehub, the experts on gravel riding in the Bend and Central Oregon region, to provide maps, cue sheets, and ride descriptions for you to explore some of the area’s less traveled roads and trails by bike. While singletrack trails in Deschutes National Forest are non-motorized and do not permit ebikes, gravel routes that do not utilize singletrack are ebike-friendly.

Interested in gravel racing? The Cascade Gravel Grinder and Oregon Trail Gravel Grinder events both offer more challenging and scenic courses in Central Oregon, giving you the best gravel riding experience in the region.