Cline Falls State Scenic Viewpoint
Encyclopedia
Cline Falls State Scenic Viewpoint (also known as Cline Falls State Park) is a state park
near Redmond
, Oregon
, United States
. It is located on the Deschutes River. The park covers 9 acres (36,421.7 m²). It is administered by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department
.
The park has a large open lawn surrounded by Ponderosa pine
, Western juniper, poplar, and locust
trees that extend to the river’s edge. The park also includes riparian habitat, sagebrush
covered uplands, and canyon rimrock
s. These areas are home to Blackbird
s, Canyon Wren
, American Dipper
, Song Sparrow
s, and finches. Other song birds pass through the area during the spring and fall migrations. Prairie Falcon
and Golden Eagle
s are also found in the Cline Falls area.
As it flows by the park, the Deschutes River alternates between small rapids and calm pools. The rapids pass around a number of very large boulders. The calm sections create wetland
s along the shore that attract a variety of wildlife. Canadian Geese and other water fowl are common in the wetlands along the river. A number of small mammal
s including the Great Basin Pocket Mouse
and Sagebrush Vole
s are found in the park as well.
.
The park provides fishing access to the Deschutes River. The pools and eddies near large river rocks provide good habitat for trout. Fisherman
can find native Rainbow trout
, Brown trout
, and Bull trout
in the Cline Falls area.
The Deschutes River provides excellent rafting
, kayaking
, and canoeing
opportunities. One of the longer paddle trips on the Deschutes is a 14.5 miles (23.3 km) section of river beginning at Tumalo State Park
and ending at Cline Falls State Park. Another popular run begins at Cline Falls park and runs 11.5 miles (18.5 km) down river to the Lower Bridge Recreation Site. This run requires a portage around Cline Falls, which is located about a half mile down stream from the park.
Cline Falls State Scenic Viewpoint is closed during the winter months. When it is open, there is no charge for using the park. Alcohol is not permitted in the park at any time. The ban on alcohol is enforced by the Deschutes County
Sheriff’s Department. Park facilities include:
were attacked and badly injured in Cline Falls State Park. The two students were biking cross-country from Astoria, Oregon
to the east coast
. On the seventh day of their trip, they camped at Cline Falls State Park. In the middle of the night, a truck drove over their tent with the two campers inside. Then the driver got out of the truck and attacked the students with an axe. After striking them a number of times, the attacker stopped and drove away. Both students survived. However, their attacker was never caught. One of the survivors later wrote a book about the ordeal entitled Strange Piece of Paradise
.
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
near Redmond
Redmond, Oregon
Redmond is a city in Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. Incorporated on July 6, 1910, the city is located on the eastern side of Oregon's Cascade Range, in the High Desert, and is considered the geographical heart of Central Oregon...
, Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is located on the Deschutes River. The park covers 9 acres (36,421.7 m²). It is administered by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department
Oregon Parks and Recreation Department
The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department , officially known as the State Parks and Recreation Department, is the government agency of the U.S. state of Oregon which operates its system of state parks...
.
Cline Falls
Cline Falls are located on the Deschutes River approximately four miles west of Redmond, Oregon. The falls were named for Doctor C. A. Cline (1850–1926) a Redmond dentist, who owned the land adjacent to the falls. The falls occur just north of the point where Highway 126 crosses the Deschutes River. In the 1950s, the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department acquired property above Cline Falls for the purpose of creating a day use park.Park grounds
Cline Falls State Scenic Viewpoint is a day use park that covers 9 acres (36,421.7 m²) on the east side of the Deschutes River. It is located on the south side of the Highway 126. Because Clines Falls are a short distance north of the highway, the falls are not within the park boundary.The park has a large open lawn surrounded by Ponderosa pine
Ponderosa Pine
Pinus ponderosa, commonly known as the Ponderosa Pine, Bull Pine, Blackjack Pine, or Western Yellow Pine, is a widespread and variable pine native to western North America. It was first described by David Douglas in 1826, from eastern Washington near present-day Spokane...
, Western juniper, poplar, and locust
Gleditsia
Gleditsia is a genus of locust trees in the family Fabaceae, subfamily Caesalpinioideae, native to North America and Asia. The Latin name commemorates Johann Gottlieb Gleditsch, director of the Berlin Botanical Gardens, who died in 1786....
trees that extend to the river’s edge. The park also includes riparian habitat, sagebrush
Sagebrush
Sagebrush is a common name of a number of shrubby plant species in the genus Artemisia native to western North America;Or, the sagebrush steppe ecoregion, having one or more kinds of sagebrush, bunchgrasses and others;...
covered uplands, and canyon rimrock
Rimrock
Rimrock is the sheer rock wall at the upper edge of a plateau, canyon, or geological uplift. It may refer to either the rock formation or to the rock itself. Rimrock may be composed of almost any stone—basalt, gneiss, granite, sandstone, etc.—and is frequently layered. Many times it...
s. These areas are home to Blackbird
New World blackbird
The New World blackbirds consist of 26 species of icterid birds that share the name blackbird but do not correspond with a formal taxon...
s, Canyon Wren
Canyon Wren
The Canyon Wren is a small North American wren, and is about 14.5 cm long. It ranges from far southern British Columbia and Montana south through much of Mexico to western Chiapas and east to Oklahoma and Texas...
, American Dipper
American Dipper
The American Dipper , also known as a Water Ouzel, is a stocky dark grey bird with a head sometimes tinged with brown, and white feathers on the eyelids cause the eyes to flash white as the bird blinks. It is 16.5 cm long and weighs on average 46 g...
, Song Sparrow
Song Sparrow
The Song Sparrow is a medium-sized American sparrow.Adults have brown upperparts with dark streaks on the back and are white underneath with dark streaking and a dark brown spot in the middle of the breast. They have a brown cap and a long brown rounded tail. Their face is grey with a streak...
s, and finches. Other song birds pass through the area during the spring and fall migrations. Prairie Falcon
Prairie Falcon
The Prairie Falcon is a medium-sized falcon of western North America.It is about the size of a Peregrine Falcon or a crow, with an average length of 40 cm , wingspan of 1 metre , and weight of 720 g...
and Golden Eagle
Golden Eagle
The Golden Eagle is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Once widespread across the Holarctic, it has disappeared from many of the more heavily populated areas...
s are also found in the Cline Falls area.
As it flows by the park, the Deschutes River alternates between small rapids and calm pools. The rapids pass around a number of very large boulders. The calm sections create wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
s along the shore that attract a variety of wildlife. Canadian Geese and other water fowl are common in the wetlands along the river. A number of small mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
s including the Great Basin Pocket Mouse
Great Basin Pocket Mouse
The Great Basin Pocket Mouse is a species of rodent in the Heteromyidae family. It is found in British Columbia in Canada and the western United States.-Taxonomy:...
and Sagebrush Vole
Sagebrush Vole
The Sagebrush Vole is a tiny vole found in western North America. This is the only member of genus Lemmiscus....
s are found in the park as well.
Recreation
Since it is the closest river front park to the city of Redmond, Cline Falls State Scenic Viewpoint is a very popular recreation site for local residents. A large open lawn is available for group games and relaxing in the sun; however, most visitor come to the park to picnic and swim. The park offers a variety of swimming areas ranging from deep, calm pools to shallow coves. There are also short stretches of swift water for inner tubingTubing (recreation)
Tubing is a recreational activity where an individual rides on top of an inner tube, either on water, snow, or through the air. The tubes themselves are also known as "donuts" or "biscuits" due to their shape.-Water:Tubing on water generally consists of two forms: towed and free-floating, also...
.
The park provides fishing access to the Deschutes River. The pools and eddies near large river rocks provide good habitat for trout. Fisherman
Fisherman
A fisherman or fisher is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishermen and fish farmers. The term can also be applied to recreational fishermen and may be used to describe both men...
can find native Rainbow trout
Rainbow trout
The rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....
, Brown trout
Brown trout
The brown trout and the sea trout are fish of the same species....
, and Bull trout
Bull trout
The bull trout, Salvelinus confluentus, is a char of the family Salmonidae native to northwestern North America. Historically, S. confluentus has been known as the "Dolly Varden" , but was re-classified as a separate species in 1980. Bull trout are listed as a threatened species under the U.S....
in the Cline Falls area.
The Deschutes River provides excellent rafting
Rafting
Rafting or white water rafting is a challenging recreational outdoor activity using an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other bodies of water. This is usually done on white water or different degrees of rough water, in order to thrill and excite the raft passengers. The development of this...
, kayaking
Kayaking
Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving across water. Kayaking and canoeing are also known as paddling. Kayaking is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle...
, and canoeing
Canoeing
Canoeing is an outdoor activity that involves a special kind of canoe.Open canoes may be 'poled' , sailed, 'lined and tracked' or even 'gunnel-bobbed'....
opportunities. One of the longer paddle trips on the Deschutes is a 14.5 miles (23.3 km) section of river beginning at Tumalo State Park
Tumalo State Park
Tumalo State Park is a state park in Deschutes County, Oregon, United States, north of the city of Bend along the Deschutes River. The park is open year round....
and ending at Cline Falls State Park. Another popular run begins at Cline Falls park and runs 11.5 miles (18.5 km) down river to the Lower Bridge Recreation Site. This run requires a portage around Cline Falls, which is located about a half mile down stream from the park.
Cline Falls State Scenic Viewpoint is closed during the winter months. When it is open, there is no charge for using the park. Alcohol is not permitted in the park at any time. The ban on alcohol is enforced by the Deschutes County
Deschutes County, Oregon
-National protected areas:* Deschutes National Forest * Newberry National Volcanic Monument-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 115,367 people, 45,595 households, and 31,962 families residing in the county. The population density was 38 people per square mile . There were 54,583...
Sheriff’s Department. Park facilities include:
- Public restrooms with flush toilets
- Picnic tablePicnic tableA picnic table is a modified table with attached benches, designed for eating a meal outdoors .-Uses:...
s - Barbecue grills
- Horseshoe pits
- Fish-cleaning station
Unsolved crime
On 22 June 1977, two undergraduate students from Yale UniversityYale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
were attacked and badly injured in Cline Falls State Park. The two students were biking cross-country from Astoria, Oregon
Astoria, Oregon
Astoria is the county seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Situated near the mouth of the Columbia River, the city was named after the American investor John Jacob Astor. His American Fur Company founded Fort Astoria at the site in 1811...
to the east coast
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...
. On the seventh day of their trip, they camped at Cline Falls State Park. In the middle of the night, a truck drove over their tent with the two campers inside. Then the driver got out of the truck and attacked the students with an axe. After striking them a number of times, the attacker stopped and drove away. Both students survived. However, their attacker was never caught. One of the survivors later wrote a book about the ordeal entitled Strange Piece of Paradise
Strange Piece of Paradise
Strange Piece of Paradise: A Return to the American West to Investigate My Attempted Murder -- And Solve the Mystery of Myself is a non-fiction book by the American writer Terri Jentz. It was released in 2006.-Synopsis:...
.