On Days 22 - 24 of our RV trip to Cannon Beach, Oregon, Tom and I drove from Amity to Bend, Oregon to visit my daughter, Sierra, and explore the Bend area.
Sights along the way
Our drive from Amity to Bend was beautiful but it would have been even better with clear skies. Much of the state of Oregon has been battling wildfires and it was obvious as we drove along the North Santiam River and past Detroit Lake into Bend. The hills were scorched from previous fires and the air was hazy with smoke from current fires.
Exploring Bend
Tom and I originally planned to camp a few nights at one of the many lakes near Bend. But, because of the ongoing wildfires and because my daughter is living and working in Bend, we decided to "camp" the entire time at the Bend Elks Lodge, just a block from Sierra's home.
We arrived in Bend just in time for lunch. Sierra joined us for the Indian buffet at Taj Palace which was just as good as we remembered from our first trip to Bend, last May. After lunch Sierra took us on a quick tour to some of her favorite Bend hangouts including Bend Whitewater Park, Old Mill District, Lifty's, and our new favorite grocery store, WinCo Foods.
Tom enjoyed a morning bike ride around Bend while Sierra and I went spelunking in Boyd Cave. We returned in time to eat lunch before an afternoon rafting trip down the Deschutes River, which runs through Bend.
Tom and I rafted the Big Eddy Thriller trip with our favorite Sun Country Tours rafting guide, Sierra. After a short bus ride from the Sun Country Tours office, we launched from the Aspen site on the Upper Deschutes River. We floated through forests and lava fields before paddling down Class 1, 2, and 3 rapids. Sierra intentionally placed Tom and I at the front of the raft. I thought she wanted us to have good views. But, as we splashed through the Class 3 rapids, I realized she just wanted to see us get soaked.
When Sierra isn't guiding trips down the river, she's serving Italian food and drinks at Pastini in the Old Mill District. She described some of the dishes to us and they were too tempting to pass up. So, we popped in while she was working. I'm not used to having so many vegetarian choices so it was a tough decision. I went with the Butternut Squash - Gorgonzola Ravioli and Tom ordered the Baked Ziti with Italian Sausage. They were both fabulous!
Aly was not left out of the Bend fun. We discovered the Pine Nursery Dog Park just a few miles from where we "camped". It has a huge fenced area. Part of it has dirt walking trails with natural landscape and the other part is a big green lawn. There is plenty of space for dogs and their humans to get some exercise and meet new friends. We took Aly there almost every day and she decided it's the "best dog park ever"!
Slideshow - Days 22 - 24
Here are photos from Days 22 - 24 of our RV trip to Cannon Beach, Oregon.
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