Upper Klamath Canoe Trail in Oregon

Trip Overview

Two main creeks and a shallow channel make up the 9.5-mile Upper Klamath Canoe Trail that meanders through marshes that form part of the Upper Klamath National Wildlife Refuge. The canoe trail provides the only means of exploring the refuge.

Four segments make up the canoe trail:
Crystal Creek, Malone Springs, Recreation Creek, and Wocus Cut.
Signs help mark the trail. Crystal Creek, Recreation Creek, and Pelican Bay form a loop that will keep paddlers entertained for hours.

Aspen, pine, and willow line the west bank, rushes line the east bank of Recreation Creek; wocus, rushes, and grasses line the east bank.

Crystal Creek is more in the marsh, so cattails, rushes, and wocus dominate. Paddlers on Crystal Creek get a nice view of Mt. McLoughlin. Paddlers are likely to see river otters, herons, and white pelicans.

Water levels can drop in late summer and early fall, so the best time to visit is late spring, early summer, and late fall.

There are two places paddlers can launch at: the boat launch at Rocky Point and a primitive launch at Malone Springs.

Accommodations:

Rocky Point Resort is a nice place to stay right at the edge of the canoe trail. The resort has four guest rooms, campsites for tents and RVs, and a restaurant. They also rent canoes and kayaks at the resort.

Malone Springs Campground is a primitive campground managed by the Forest Service. There are only two, free tent sites available on a first-come-first-serve basis, a vault toilet, and no water facility, which means you�ll have to bring in your own potable water.

Directions:

Rocky Point and the canoe trail is 30 miles north of Klamath Falls, Oregon. Drive north on OR 140 and turn right onto Westside Road.

If coming from the north, take US 97 south out of Bend, Oregon. Turn right onto Highway 422, right onto Oregon 62, left onto Weed Road, left onto Sevenmile Road, which becomes Westside Road, and follow the road south until you reach the Rocky Point Resort.

Launches:

There are two places paddlers can launch from: the boat launch at Rocky Point and a primitive launch at Malone Springs.

Contact:

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Upper Klamath National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters

Off Hwy 40

Klamath Falls, OR 97601

phone: 530-667-2231