Deschutes Forest NFD 4600-120 Dispersed Camping

Easy to find using the directions. You just ignore the signs that says no camping and keep going and you will see the Forrest roads that allow camping. Sites are not that secluded (just pine trees) but they are very far from each other. I arrived about 5:30 and saw two dirt bike riders but after that nothing.

Literally complete silence throughout the night and close enough to come back and have breakfast in Bend ! (Be warned it got cold in October, my 30 f rated bag was not warm enough but lucky I brought a liner)

This site is open, you just have to drive a lil farther back to the sites and get out of the restricted area.

The entrance to the sites is about 10 minutes from the middle of Bend, so it's really close which is nice. From the entrance it's maybe 5-7min farther back until you get out of the restricted area until pullouts for camping become noticeable. I took a left at the fork; I think the right side also has sites but I'm not sure how far back.

The road is really dusty and not the smoothest, but my sedan made the trip a dozen times so it's doable, you just have to go slow. Plenty of people were van camping, but an RV/trailer might have some trouble getting back.

I stayed here for 2 nights, then camp back to do some longer camping since Bend is so close and has everything you'd need. It looks like some others might be doing some long term camping; between when I left and came back (bout 5 days) two of the campers were there, but it was van campers who were quiet and respected the space. There was one setup that was gone when I got back, but it was on the messier side and I could never tell if it was a permanent set up. However the area is a hotspot for mountain bikers and people generally seemed to respect the area, so I felt really safe.

The sites also are pretty small and right off the road. They're not the smoothest, but some are definitely better than others. There isn't a ton of privacy between the sites (I can see both my neighbors) but if you just need a place to crash this will do. There's cell service which is nice.

The biggest cons of this site is that the road isn't amazing and it's super dusty. But it's really hard to beat the location. There is supposedly other free camping off the Cascade Lakes Byway, so if you want to try and find something else there are still other free spots in the area.

People on here are concerned with the No Camping signs. You need to keep driving on that road to get out of the "no camping" zone. They are doing reclamation in the area right off the highway. The camp sites are rather small, only acceptable to small moterhomes, small trailers or tents.