Bend Inn Suites

We drive alongside the Clackamas River, so beautiful we run out of adjectives as we point out to each other the views we want to share. Driving up towards the Cascades we see Mt. Hood in the distance, alone and majestic. At 4800 feet we drive through Santiam Pass and start the long road down, final destination Bend. We set up camp in Tumalo State Park. It is the weekend, there are so many people in the state parks we pass, we decide to stay two nights right here.

We stopped in La Pine and walked.<br><br>We stopped in the Volcanic Monument.<br><br>We walked on the Lava Fields.<br><br>We drove through Bend, Redmond &amp; Madras.<br><br>Past Warm Springs, the car overheated and we pulled over.<br><br>We waited for the car to cool down.<br><br>We, slowly, drove up the mountain to Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood.<br>

We went to the Crook County Museum.<br><br>We drove north into the Ochoco's.<br><br>We went to the Painted Hills, John Day Fossil Beds.<br><br>We drove through Mitchell and failed to find food.<br><br>We drove through Dayville and failed to find food.<br><br>We had food in Mt. Vernon.<br><br>We drove down the S. Fork of the John Day river and slept near Izee.

We drove to Bend.<br><br>We drove up Pilot Butte.<br><br>We walked around Drake Park and Bend downtown.<br><br>We went to a comic shop.<br><br>We had tea at Townshend's.<br><br>We met my old friends and walked to Old Mill district.<br><br>We ate American Chinese food.<br><br>We watched a cinema.<br><br>We drove back to Prineville.

We had a couple family dinner's.<br><br>We walked around Prineville.<br><br>We went to the court-house.<br><br>We went to the round-up at the park.<br><br>We sat in the yard and watched 4th of July fireworks.<br><br>We drove up to the Prineville Reservoir and watched deer.<br><br>We traveled to Bend intermittently.<br>

... While the weather had been gloomy all morning, it was definitely growing steadily worse so we gave up on further sightseeing and continued our drive. The sky was made all the more oppresive by the thick, brown plumes of smoke that were billowing from dozens of fires (presumably controlled burns) in the scrubland off the roadside. Time was not on our side, since we had to set our clocks back an hour upon entering the Pacific Time ...

... morning Kaycie and I woke up at 7:45 to go up to the mountain. After calling the mountain for the morning ski report and looking on-line at the Mt. Bachelor cams we decided the wind was blowing too hard to have a successful day on the mountain. Some may call us wimps, but some days are just better for staying indoors and working on a puzzle.

... note: Today the Columbia River has been tamed by several dams, but when Lewis and Clark came here as their final destination the river was a raging current. After struggling through the Bitterroot Mountains the explorers were determined to get back on the water. They put everything in their canoes and set onto the rapids, while the local Indians stood on the hillside to watch the excitement, placing bets against the crazy white men. All of their canoes made it ...