Little Malheur River

  • Moderate (to South Bullrun Creek)
  • 9.6 miles round trip
  • 890 feet elevation loss
  • Open late June through November
  • Use: hikers, horses


  • Difficult (entire trail)
  • 14.8 miles round trip
  • 1330 feet elevation loss


The Little Malheur River begins as a small creek tumbling through a densely forested valley high in the Blue Mountains. Even as you follow the river trail down into a canyon of ponderosa pines, the Little Malheur remains little enough that it’s easy to negotiate the seven bridgeless crossings on fallen logs or rocks without getting your feet wet. This corner of the Monument Rock Wilderness is so rarely visited that elk, deer, and even shy black bears look up curiously before galumphing away.

Start by driving …

This chapter taken from the book 100 Hikes/Travel Guide: Eastern Oregon.