[5] It drains a rural area on the east side of the Cascade Range south of Bend.

[6] The Little Deschutes and two other streams in its basin are listed as parts of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.

The Little Deschutes River rises near Mule Peak in the high Cascades in the Mount Thielsen Wilderness in northwestern Klamath County, approximately 20 miles (32 km) north of Crater Lake.

It flows generally north from the mountains through the Deschutes National Forest, roughly following U.S. Highway 97 past La Pine.

The river's canyon and outwash plain contain eroding deposits of pumice and ash from the eruption of Mount Mazama about 7,000 years ago.