Old McKenzie Pass Oregon Cascades

The History and Construction of Highway 242: The Old McKenzie Pass Road: Highway 242, known historically as the Old McKenzie Pass Road, is a scenic, seasonal highway traversing Oregon’s central Cascades between the towns of Sisters and McKenzie Bridge. Originally established as a wagon route in the 1870s, the road has played a key role in connecting the Willamette Valley with Central Oregon across the rugged volcanic terrain of the Cascade Range. The earliest version of the route was pioneered by settlers and teamsters in the 1860s and ’70s to improve overland access through the Cascades. In 1872, the McKenzie Salt Springs and Deschutes Wagon Road Company began improving the path into a toll road, facilitating the movement of freight, livestock, and settlers across the pass. Although rudimentary and often treacherous, this early route became one of the most important east-west corridors across the mountains. By the early 20th century, the advent of automobiles prompted Oregon’s highway engineers to modernize the corridor. Construction of the paved McKenzie Highway (State Highway No. 242) began in the 1920s and was completed in 1925. The project followed the original wagon road alignment closely, winding steeply through dense forests, over lava flows, and across the crest of the Cascades at McKenzie Pass (elevation 5,325 feet). The roadbed was laid using early highway construction techniques that accommodated narrow, winding alignments and minimal excavation. The highway’s most iconic feature is its traverse of the vast lava fields near the summit, a stark volcanic landscape shaped by the nearby Belknap Crater complex. In 1935, the Civilian Conservation Corps constructed the Dee Wright Observatory at the pass using local basaltic lava rock, offering panoramic views of the surrounding Cascade peaks and a unique interpretive stop along the route. Due to high snowfall and the narrow, winding nature of the road, Highway 242 is typically closed from November through June each year. Over time, as vehicle traffic increased and larger freight vehicles became more common, the state redirected most year-round traffic to the more modern McKenzie River Highway (U.S. Route 126), constructed to the south in the 1960s. Today, Highway 242 remains a seasonal byway preserved for its historical significance and scenic value. Designated part of the McKenzie Pass–Santiam Pass Scenic Byway, it is popular with motorists, cyclists, and sightseers during the summer months. Though no longer a primary transportation corridor, it stands as a testament to early road-building in Oregon and the challenges of traversing a volcanic mountain range. Deschutes County, Deschutes National Forest, Highway 242, Lava, ODOT