I continue to get very mixed info about Bull Run, also called Horseshoe, airstrip on the Deschutes River in Oregon. I hear about guys flying in there all the time, but I also heard from someone who contacted the BLM office in Prineville (they have jurisdiction over that part of the river) just last week and were told it was closed to aircraft. Someone else who also heard this a year or so ago said yes that was true, but the Prineville office had told them that it was not putting "much" effort into enforcement. Does anyone know any more than this? Has anyone experienced any enforcement action? Has the runway experienced any vandalism from self-appointed environmentalists? Seems to me that as long as diesel trains and roaring jet boats are allowed in the area aircraft with much less environmental impact should also be allowed.

I have been there a number of times. It's a great spot with access to some nice trout water and a few nice steelhead holes up stream. One time a river ranger took my tail number and told me that it was part of the wild and scenic river corridor and that I shouldn't be there. I did mention the railroad and jet boats to counter his assertion. He didn't know how to handle it, or even if I had broken any laws. He informed me that he would discuss it with his boss. I never heard anything else of it.

If you ask the BLM for permission to go there, the answer will most likely be no, even if the person that you talk to knows nothing at all about the strip. This is likely to be the case. I wouldn't ask them. If they happen to get their knickers in a twist over your being there, beg for forgiveness. Any laws you may be violating are fairly nebulous.

It sees pretty regular use and is smooth and narrow with a bit of a dogleg. There are large rock piles lining the strip in the brush immediately to the east, so put it right on the tire tracks and keep it there. A guy hit one of those rock piles some years ago in a Husky and made a big a mess of a sweet flying machine.

Keep a low profile and you can come and go for years as I have. Maybe I'll see you down there some time.