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Sunriver Oregon Real Estate

About the Sunriver Area Community

Sunriver is located in the southern portion of Deschutes County, two miles west of US Hwy 97 and 15 miles south of Bend. It is bordered on the west by the Deschutes River and surrounded by National Forest Land. Commercial Air fights are offered through Horizon Air, United Express, and Delta via Redmond/Bend Municipal Airport (RDX), 30 miles to the north, and the private Sunriver Airport which serve Sunriver. This thriving resort community sits at 4,200 feet, with winter high- low temperatures between 20 to 39 degrees, and summer high- low between 41 to 83 degrees. Annual snowfall averages 45 inches, and the community is within a 20-minute drive of Mt. Bachelor Ski Resort.

Sunriver is an extremely popular Northwest year-round Destination Resort and a permanent home to many lucky residents. It boasts three nationally ranked championship golf courses, including Crosswater, Woodlands and Meadows, easy access to world class downhill powder skiing at Mt. Bachelor ( www.mtbachelor.com ), and miles of cross country trails throughout the area. Music festivals, numerous fishing opportunities, and general outdoor fun abound. Sunriver is an unincorporated planned community, consisting of interrelated villages containing single and multi family residential, resort, commercial and industrial properties. The Sunriver Owners Association ( www.sunriverowners.org ) oversees all development within Sunriver’s planned community except for the privately owned Business Park. Sunriver also has its own on-site fire and police departments ( www.sunriversd.org ).

Sunriver also has an excellent grade school - junior high, Three Rivers School in the business park. This is part of the Bend-LaPine School District. Also located in the park is a branch of the Deschutes County Library (Sunriver Library) and a branch of the U.S. Post Office with an extensive space for postal boxes and direct customer facilities. The Sunriver Village houses many fine retail and restaurant establishments including the Sunriver Country Grocery Store.

Sunriver is a widely renowned resort community in the heart of Central Oregon. It is comprised of permanent and secondary homes ranging on an average from $315,000 to $439,000 for 3 bedrooms, 2 baths of approximately 1900 sq .ft. In comparison to Vail, Aspen, or Lake Tahoe, Sunriver is still very affordable. There is some one of kind residences and estate homes nestled along the Deschutes in Sunriver and on the Crosswaters Resort just on Sunriver southern boundary. Most all of the homes are custom quality in construction. The homes are either single family or up end condos.

Sunriver History

Planners for the community of Sunriver stressed the desire to retain as much of the natural, unspoiled beauty as possible. From its inception in 1969, Sunriver was designed as an ecological experiment, to determine if humans and wildlife could coexist in harmony within certain guidelines. Though the idea was scoffed at by many and given two years to survive, it is interesting to note that Sunriver has continued to prosper as well as maintain the rigid rules that protect the flora and fauna.

Artifacts, unearthed from the silt and soil of an ancient lakebed nearby, reveal that native Americans were inhabitants several thousand years ago. Early history indicates beaver trappers found a wealth of game in the area, which they called “Canoe Camp.” French trappers named the river “Riviera Des Chutes” meaning River of the Rapids and, from this origin, it is known today as the Deschutes River. Among historical celebrities known to have traveled through the area were John C. Fremont, and guide Kit Carson, as they journeyed to California during the winter of 1843. Though other explorers, trappers, hunters and fishermen no doubt visited this paradise over the years, the first to take note of the region as a place for civilization was lit. Henry Larcom Abbot, leader of a survey crew for the Pacific Railroad. While investigating the possibility of a rail-route through the area, he established camp near the site known as Sunriver.

Cattlemen drove their herds from the lower desert to the region during summer seasons since the lush meadowlands were found to be excellent for grazing at that time of year. The first of these to homestead a residence in the vicinity was the Vandevert family, pioneers whose ranch was just south of Sunriver. Their children attended classes at the Meadow School, long since removed from its location, approximately one hundred yards southeast of the present site of the lodge, in the late 1800s.

The most noteworthy transaction was the purchase of 5,500 acres (encompassing the site that was to become Sunriver) by the government during World War II. The Army Corps of Engineers built Camp Abbot in 1942 and it opened officially ion September 1943. Though it existed for only a short time, it served as a training camp for army personnel to develop their skills in bridge building and the construction of canals and roads.

Designed to be a self-contained city, complete with water and sewage systems and all facilities deemed necessary to accommodate 10,000, only remnants of this era remain today. The Great Hall, which served as the officer’s club, has withstood the ravages of time and remains as stately as ever. The timbers, hewn for its construction, were cut down from the surrounding property. Though such an act would be prohibited today, forty years have helped heal many of the old scars and wounds suffered by “Mother Nature.” The Great Hall displays the skills of the craftsmen who constructed this mighty structure. The little canal-like stream, which residents whimsically refer to as Sun River, where one can observe Canadian geese enjoying the waters as they take a rest from their flight, is another legacy of the Corps.

During the years between the 1800s and 1960s the land was bought and sold, divided and consolidated numerous times for various purposes; thus, title searches of an exhaustive nature were required to provide clear title for Sunriver Properties, Inc. of Bend, the first principals being John Cray and Don McCallum.

Within two years, or less, from the time John Cray, head of Omark Industries and developer of the prestigious complex of Salishan, unveiled plans for Sunriver in April 1969, the project literally exploded. The lodge was constructed, homesites were plotted, pool, airstrip, tennis courts, golf course, bike paths and stables were completed. Interestingly enough, the bike paths were originally designed to accommodate electric golf carts, to serve as an alternate mode of travel for the local populace.

Driving to Sunriver
From miles:
Bend 15
Eugene 143
La Pine 12
Medford 197
Mt. Bachelor 18
Portland 175
Salem 146
Seattle 355

Flying to Sunriver
Horizon Air and United Express service is available from Portland and Seattle. All flights serve the Bend/Redmond Airport (541-388-0019), 45 minutes from Sunriver.

Private aircraft can fly directly into Sunriver’s airport, open year around. Contact the Sunriver Airport at 541-593-4603.

Bend Home Sales, LLC
John Melton
Broker / Consultant

Direct: 541.350.6500
Email: John Melton

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