The Cascade to Caves Route (or Monument to Monument Route) is an approximately 80-mile backpack from the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument near Ashland, OR all the way to the Oregon Caves National Monument near Cave Junction, OR.
The route uses about 50 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, from Pilot Rock to Cook ‘n Green Pass, then continues along a commanding complex of rocky summits rising to nearly 7,000’. It then drops into an expansive basin peppered by cedars so big they’re often mistaken for California Redwoods. From there, the route rises back to the high Siskiyous before reaching a labyrinth of marble caves.
A large portion of the route was neglected until the nonprofit Siskiyou Mountain Club began maintenance, starting in 2017. Over a few years, volunteers, interns, and staff worked to “make the dream become a reality, with signs up along the way,” according to the club’s executive director Gabriel Howe.
The Cascade to Caves Route passes through the Red Buttes Wilderness and the Oregon Caves National Monument, as well as the Rogue River-Siskiyou and Klamath national forests.
Read more from Siskiyou Mountain Club: https://siskiyoumountainclub.org/blogs/siskiyou-hiker-news/signature-routes-of-the-siskiyou-backwoods
Or from news outlets reporting on the opening of the route in 2019:
https://www.oregonlive.com/travel/2019/10/new-hiking-trail-in-southern-oregon-connects-oregon-caves-to-cascade-siskiyou.html
https://ktvl.com/news/local/new-trail-connects-cascade-siskiyou-to-oregon-caves
https://www.heraldandnews.com/outdoors/hiking-route-links-oregon-california-monuments/article_677c0959-601f-5bd4-a1c7-717a6d00bc9a.html
