Greetings from Bend, Oregon!! We have been here since June 24th and we have so enjoyed this area! The weather has been glorious - beautiful sunshine in the low 70s to mid-80's with very low humidity with overnight lows in the high 40's / low 50's. We have dear friends who live here - Carol and Chuck Varland - and they have been outstanding hosts, sharing so many beautiful areas with us!
Our last post we were in Vale, OR for one night. On Tuesday, June 24th, we continued west towards Bend - it was a gorgeous drive.
We arrived to Tumalo State Park Campground - we love our campsite - and our reservation is for 13 nights, so lots of time to explore the area. Near our campground was a beautiful hiking trail along the Deschutes River. The pine trees here are incredible - abundant and so tall!
Our first major adventure was going to Crater Lake National Park - it's about a 2-hour drive south of Bend. It is spectacular - beautiful sweeping views and we enjoyed a picnic near the Crater Lake Lodge - this is a "must see" if you are in the area and we were so fortunate to have beautiful weather.
The next day, we explored two beautiful areas closer to Bend. The first was Tumalo Falls - there are many beautiful waterfalls here and this one is closest to Bend proper.
That afternoon, we went to the Lava Butte - there are multiple lava fields in this area and the scenery was breathtaking with the snow-capped mountains in the background.
We took a quick break from sightseeing and Paul fixed our air conditioner (my hero) and we had an easy casual dinner at our campsite with Carol and Chuck.
The next day, went to Smith Rock State Park - a real "WOW" with spectacular scenery and beautiful hiking trails. It is well known for rock climbing and we watched several as we ambled along!
After Smith Rock, we grabbed sandwiches and picnicked at a rest area just north of Bend - called the Peter Skene Ogden Rest Area - it was a lovely park that is situated along the Deschutes River flowing through a dramatically steep Canyon. There are 3 bridges that cross the canyon - the highway, a pedestrian bridge (where they had people bungee jumping - check out this cool video
here) and then a railroad bridge. Such a stunning area!! If you go and have a dog, make sure you keep them in the car and/or on a leash - this prominent sign is right where you park:
I will post again soon with the second half of our time here in Bend. This is such a beautiful area and it has been wonderful to spend time with the Varlands. Two of their children - Justin and Emily - also live here with their families and it has been a joy spending time with them as well.
Until next time - thanks for following along - cheers and love, Jen & Paul
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