Freebridge Road is named after a free bridge across the Deschutes River that Wasco County constructed in 1887 as an alternative to the nearby toll bridges. Apparently the toll bridge owners didn’t like the competition, because in 1914 the bridge mysteriously “collapsed in a windstorm” — but many say it was more likely dynamited intentionally.
The concrete supports still sit in the middle of the river today.
Read MoreMill Creek Lookout breaks off of the end of Mill Creek Road onto a rugged path and claws its way from the bottom of the valley onto the ridge top that’s been sharpened over the millennia by the north and south forks of Mill Creek running parallel on either side. It’s remote, 4-wheelers-and-shotgun-shells territory up here, so make sure you have everything you need in the event of a double-flat-broken-derailleur-type scenario.
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