Arnold Ice Cave Details

Activities
- Mountain Bike
- Adaptive Bike
- Horse
- Hike
- Trail Running
Riding Area

Horse Butte
Bend, Oregon
Ref Number

#3963
Difficulty Rating

Blue Rate
Local Popularity
5 in Mountain Biking [+]
- 5 in Trail Running
- 5 in Hiking
- 5 in Horseback
Global Ranking
#127582 in Mountain Biking [+]
- #137468 in Trail Running
- #131452 in Hiking
Hiking SAC Scale

T1 Hiking
Trail Type

Singletrack
Bike Type

XC, Adaptive MTB
Direction

Both Directions
Climb Difficulty

Blue
Physical Rating

Moderate
Dogs Allowed

Yes
eBike Allowed

No

Arnold Ice Cave Trail runs from Horse Butte trailhead all the way out to Swamp Wells Horse Camp.

Bunch grass, sagebrush and hidden rocks make for a narrow tread — with the trail getting more remote as you get farther from Horse Butte. The trail starts in the tree cover, and ends in tree cover — but the vast majority of the trail has open views all around. There are some rocky bits along the way with the most challenging portion being a short switchback climb up a ridge just before mile 3.

The first intersection on this trail is with Boyd Cave Trail around mile 4. Many people ride a 10 mile loop connecting Arnold Ice Cave, Boyd Cave, Coyote Loop Trail, and Swamp Wells.

The second intersection is with Horse to Horse which will take you out to the Horse Ridge riding area. From this intersection the trail has no other intersections until you reach the Horse Camp. From the camp you have the option of heading back to Horse Butte by way of Coyote Loop, or Swamp Wells.

Adaptive Bike Info

aMTB Green Rating: Beginner features and moderate terrain.

First 4 miles were assessed for aMTB use. Check out the horse butte loop (https://www.trailforks.com/route/horse-butte-loop/) aMTB rating is provided for general information only and may not reflect the technical difficulty of the trail or a particular rider's support needs. COTA completed a trail assessment process, please find more information on our website: https://www.cotamtb.com/amtb-trail-information.html. Contact Oregon Adaptive Sports for more information or ride support: https://oregonadaptivesports.org.

Trail Supporters

USFS
Land Manager

Recent Activity on Trail

Past Week

0 rides

6 Months

0 rides

All

50 rides
Last: Apr 30, 2025

c1	c2	c3	c4
January	February	March	April
May	June	July	August
September	October	November	December

update trails status or condition

Arnold Ice Cave Trail Reports

status	date	description
	Apr 19, 2026 @ 6:16pm (America/Los_Angeles) Apr 19, 2026	Drove in through Milican Valley to ride this since I was missing getting lost in the woods in this part of the forest. Parked at Arnold Ice Cave....
	May 7, 2025 @ 12:13pm May 7, 2025	reporter The Deschutes National Forest will temporarily close the Cabin Butte Vegetation Management Project area south of Bend, Oregon, beginning May 1, to...
	Apr 27, 2025 @ 7:41am Apr 27, 2025	As good as it gets. Go get it before it closes. A few small snow patches near the horse camp.
	Jul 11, 2024 @ 8:15am Jul 11, 2024
	Apr 30, 2023 @ 9:50pm Apr 30, 2023	I went up Coyote to Swamp Wells Horse Camp and down Arnold Ice Cave trail. The top still had some decent size patches of snow. Most of them I...