Pilot Butte

Smack dab in the middle of Bend, a big nob rises high up in the air. This is Pilot Butte, a 480 foot high cinder cone that erupted approximately 190,000 years ago. During the eruption, molten rock rose to the surface where it violently foamed due to escaping steam and sprayed glowing cinders hundreds of feet into the air. This eruption lasted a few months to a year or two.
The actual vent is located approximately 300 feet southwest of the summit. A two lane one mile road spirals up the butte to the summit in conjunction with another hiking trail spiral.
The drive up is a bit intimidating because of the vertical drop on the outside of the road but once there the view is well worth it.At the top there is limited parking along the road and a spectacular commanding view of Bend. It almost feels as if you are in an airplane flying over the city.I snapped this photo looking East......and Teddy with her trusty Olympus captured this view of the city looking West. The snowcapped peaks of the Three Sisters rise up from the Cascade range in the far background and in the foreground is the street from which I snapped the approach shot above.




On the way down Teddy elected to hike the trail...
























...so I drove down and waited in the parking lot at the trailhead.

The High Desert Museum

If you should have occasion to visit Bend, Oregon, a visit to the "High Desert Museum" should not to be missed.
Located about five miles south of Bend it has both outdoor live exhibits and indoor full size dioramas of early Oregon life.


While not in any exhibit per se this little fellow and his friends were ever alert looking for handouts from the many visitors.







Actually, I'm not as brave as this picture might suggest as this Northern Pacific Rattlesnake was behind a glass window.



















A pair of otters were frolicking in a large outdoor pool.












This is a rehabbed Swainson's Hawk that can't be released back to the wild because he/she has become imprinted on humans.











There is a small stream running through the property stocked with trout and salmon.

We throughly enjoyed our trip to the High Desert Museum.

Sisters

Last Friday, May 8, Teddy and I visited the small resort town of Sisters, Oregon. Sisters is located about 20 miles east of Bend and is apparently named after the three mountain peaks known as The Three Sisters which lie midway between Bend & Sisters. We left Bend on Rt. 20 which connects the two cities and as we were leaving Bend we were gobsmacked with this awesome view of Mt. Jefferson through our front windscreen.
Then as the road twisted and turned we were treated alternately with views of

Black Butte to the South of Mt. Jefferson...




...and further south the aforementioned Three Sisters.
That's South Sister to the left, then Middle Sister and North Sister on the right.
The Three Sisters and their neighbors to the north are mentioned in some of Oregon's earliest history. It is not known who first used the name Three Sisters to describe these peaks. In the early days they were often referred to as Faith, Hope, and Charity, starting from the north. These names, however did not prevail.
Lieutenant H.L. Abbot of the Pacific Railroad Surveys wrote of this view of the Three Sisters in his journal on September 4, 1855: "This morning, after riding a few miles, we emerged from the forest, and traversed an elevated plateau, dotted with cedars [junipers] and sage bushes...The air was uncommonly clear and pure...The snowy peaks of the Three Sisters appeared quite near."

After stopping for these photos we continued on to Sisters where we browsed several of the tourist gift shops and I snapped this photo of "Bronco Billy's" formerly known as the "Hotel Sisters", purported to be one of the most photographed buildings in Central Oregon.I was also able to capture a photo of this fierce looking desperado peering out from behind the bars of the local jail.

May 1, 2009, We get Bent!

This summer we decided to delay the 2500 mile trip back to Wisconsin & Michigan, and explore some of the Northwest. Our good friends, Jim & Carol Babcock whom we met in Lake Havasu City a few years back, live in central Oregon (Terrebonne) and suggested that we give Oregon a try. So on April 30 we pulled up stakes and headed north. On May 1 we landed here in Bend, Oregon and are safely ensconced in the side yard of the home of Jim Carprnter. Jim and Billie rent out a full-hook-up RV site next to their house. Our friend Jan Morse saw their ad in Motor Home Magazine and bought it to our attention. I called Jim and he still had May open so we took it. Jim and Billie are super friendly retired folks about our age (well...maybe a little bit younger :-)). He was in building sales and she worked in a nursery.
Terrebonne, where Jim & Carol live is a small village about 40 miles north of here and on Tuesday we drove up to see them. They treated us to dinner and took us for a scenic drive of the area. They live in a subdivision called the Crooked River Ranch. The Crooked River runs through the "Ranch" cutting a deep deep gorge with spectacular scenery. The walls of the gorge are absolutely vertical and you can walk right up to the edge of the (pit of the stomach knee weakening) precipices.
Back here in Bend we have been exploring the city & surrounds and it looks like we will not lack for things to see and do in the coming month.

4th Year Travels

Today, May 1, 2009 we began our fifth year as RV "Fulltimers". We began year four in Cedar, Michigan (Near Traverse City) and start year five here in Bend, Oregon. In the past four years in addition to Cedar we have spent at least a weeks time in or near the following cities. Sebring. Florida; Appleton, Wisconsin; South Bend, Indiania; Bement, Illinois; Lake Havasu City, Arizona; Dinosaur, Colorado; Niland, California; Puerto Peñasco, Sonora, Mexico; Pahrump, Nevada; & Florence, Arizona.We are eagerly looking forward to see what new adventures await us in the coming year.
Here is a map outlining our travels in each of the four preceding years.
Click on map for a larger image.