Sister Mountains rising above the high desert, snow on the peaks, pines in the foreground
Sister Mountains rising above the high desert, snow on the peaks, pines in the foreground

I went to Bend with my dad when I was a kid. I didn't remember it.

A couple of years later I was up there for work and got the strangest déjà vu — I knew I'd been on those streets before, even though nothing in my head said so. That's how this trip got planned. Late May 2025, a few days off, time to actually be here on purpose. Solo trip — I drove up, walked everywhere, ate well, and drank a beer I now think about more often than I'd like to admit.

The drive there is half the trip

Genuinely. This trip rolled directly out of South Lake Tahoe, so the drive into Bend was a full day of its own — and I drove it in an EV, which made the route a little more interesting.

I left South Lake Tahoe on US 50 into Carson City, then 580 up into Reno and 395 north all the way to Susanville. Charging stops in Reno and Susanville gave me a chance to stretch my legs and look at the map. North of Reno, 395 turned into one of those drives where the towns get quieter the further you go. Milford, on Honey Lake, was practically silent.

From Susanville I cut west on California 139 and the world got even quieter. Long stretches with no oncoming cars at all. Past Eagle Lake, I detoured down Susanville Road into the town of Bieber (yes, like the singer?), then up Bieber Lookout Road to climb back to 139 and on through Tulelake.

The whole back half of that drive is dominated by Mount Shasta. Majestic, white-capped, throwing a perfect lenticular cloud off its summit because the mountain is so tall it makes its own weather. It became the anchor point of the drive — every glance forward was Shasta getting bigger.

Crossing into Oregon, I pulled off at the Grocery Outlet on Hwy 39 to charge again, and grabbed a KFC next door. The chicken was meh; the biscuits and honey are the only reason I ever go.

From there it was 97 north to Bend through some of the most densely packed forest I'd seen in years — towering ponderosas on both sides, trucks and traffic moving fast, white-capped Cascades flickering through the trees on the left. By the time the snowcaps started openly peeking over the sagebrush, I knew I was close.

Bachelor's snowcap rising above a foreground of sagebrush and ponderosa
Bachelor's snowcap rising above a foreground of sagebrush and ponderosa

There's a stretch where the road just opens out and the Cascades line up in your windshield. I pulled over more than once. I'd recommend you do the same.

Walking the whole town

I absolutely hiked and walked the whole town. The hotel was near the river, and Bend's downtown is the kind of place where the car can stay parked. I walked along the Deschutes every day — same path, different time of day, totally different mood. Late afternoon, dusk, twilight, and the rare clear night where Mount Bachelor sits right over the water:

Late-afternoon view down the Deschutes River, lavender and grasses in the foreground Deschutes River at golden hour, warm pink and orange sky reflected on the water Hayden Homes Amphitheater lit up at dusk along the Deschutes Deschutes River at dusk with the last light fading behind a hill Mount Bachelor visible over the Deschutes River in the early evening Mount Bachelor silhouette over the Deschutes River at last light

Monkless. The Curtain Closer.

This is the part of the post I've been waiting to write.

A plate of seared sausage over potato gnocchi, parmesan, with a snifter of dark beer in the background
A plate of seared sausage over potato gnocchi, parmesan, with a snifter of dark beer in the background

Monkless is a Belgian-style brewery on the river in downtown Bend. Their Curtain Closer is a strong dark ale and it is the best beer I had on the trip. I went back. More than once. On foot. I'd walk along the river, have a Curtain Closer (sometimes two), eat something excellent, and walk back along the river to the hotel.

It's hard to overstate how good that little routine was. The food was excellent. The beer was amazing. The walk was the bonus that turned dinner into a thing I still think about.

I want more of that beer.

Tumalo Falls

Tumalo Falls — a tall, sheer waterfall pouring off a basalt cliff into a forested canyon
Tumalo Falls — a tall, sheer waterfall pouring off a basalt cliff into a forested canyon

Tumalo Falls is the kind of waterfall that doesn't need a wide-angle lens to feel huge. You can hike to the top, you can hike down the canyon, you can do both. I did both. The still doesn't capture how loud it is at the rim — turn the sound on:

The trail in still has snow patches in late May:

Late-spring trail above Tumalo Falls — packed dirt with a lingering snow patch and tall conifers
Late-spring trail above Tumalo Falls — packed dirt with a lingering snow patch and tall conifers

The falls themselves, walked around for different angles — the closer view, the look-down from the rim, and the glimpses through the trees on the descent:

Tumalo Falls in close — the lip of the drop and the spray below Top of a downstream Tumalo Falls drop, looking over the lip into the basalt canyon Overhead view straight down into the heart of Tumalo Falls Tumalo Falls glimpsed through the canopy on the descending trail A second waterfall further down Tumalo Creek, cascading between basalt walls

A few seconds of the cascades on the canyon descent:

The whole creek is stunning all the way down — meltwater clear, cold, fast at the top, easing off as the gradient flattens:

Upper Tumalo Creek rapids framed by riparian shrubs and tall pines Tumalo Creek running through a canyon, sun lighting the spray Tumalo Creek rapids with logs and rocks, framed by tall pines Tumalo Creek glimpsed through tall conifers, rapids visible in the gap Tumalo Creek seen through pine branches, dappled sun on the water Tumalo Creek bending through a stretch of meadow and pines Wider stretch of Tumalo Creek with sun glaring on the surface, banks lined with pines Tumalo Creek running clear over a rocky bed, dense conifers on both banks A calmer pool on Tumalo Creek with sunken logs and clear water A boulder-rimmed shallow pool on Tumalo Creek, alder leaves above A broader, calmer stretch of the creek through tall pines

Where the trail levels off, the creek spreads into shallows you can see straight to the bottom of:

And further down where the gradient eases off, just creek and trees:

The Bend Municipal Watershed posts these wonderful interpretive signs along the trails. I read all of them. (I'm that guy.) Together they walk you through how snow on the Cascades becomes the water in your glass at a downtown restaurant — a 100-mile journey through volcanic rock — plus the geology that built the range and the fire ecology that keeps it healthy:

Interpretive sign titled 'One watershed shared by many' explaining how Bend's water supports both ecosystems and the city Bend Municipal Watershed sign with a trail map and protection rules Detailed Bend Municipal Watershed map showing trails through the protected area Interpretive sign titled 'Water, water, everywhere' — a diagram of how Cascade snow becomes municipal drinking water Map of the Three Sisters Wilderness, showing the volcanic peaks where Bend's water originates Interpretive sign 'Fire and Ice — Sculptors of the Cascades' explaining how volcanism and glaciers shaped the range Interpretive sign about the Bridge Creek Fire and how riparian recovery works

Shevlin Park

Shevlin Park is just outside town. It's free, it's quiet, and it's full of giant ponderosas.

A tall ponderosa pine forest interior, sunlight through the canopy
A tall ponderosa pine forest interior, sunlight through the canopy

Tumalo Creek runs through the park too, and a solitary lupine showing off on the trail. Plus the Shevlin signage, which you can use to plan a longer hike if you have the day:

Tumalo Creek through Shevlin Park, calm water over rounded river rocks A single tall lupine in bloom, deep purple-blue flowers, broad palmate leaves The Shevlin Experience interpretive sign — wildlife, cold-air conifers, and the park's pre-park history Shevlin Park trail map listing all the named trails by primary use and surface type

A short loop of the creek on the Shevlin side — calmer than the canyon, just enough flow to move some sound through the trees:

The mountain view from above

Bend has hills you can walk up that hand you the entire Cascade range as a reward. Pilot Butte is the most famous, but any of the buttes around town will do. The summit has a bronze peak-finder pointing at every named mountain on the horizon — handy for the embarrassing moment when you can't tell Bachelor from Broken Top. From up top:

A long view of the Cascades — Three Sisters, Broken Top, and the rest of the chain stretching across the horizon Wide horizon view from Pilot Butte showing the Cascades on both sides with the high desert and town in between Bronze peak-finder plaque on the Pilot Butte summit pointing at the visible Cascade peaks, with the actual range in the background Mount Bachelor's snowcap close above the treeline, downtown Bend below Three Sisters and Broken Top floating over a sea of pines Mount Hood as a tiny pale snowcap on the far horizon, north of Bend

(That last one — Mt Hood — is the small snowcap on the far right horizon. On a clear morning it pokes up from a hundred-plus miles north.)

A reservoir town that ships water bottles

I didn't go looking for it, but Hydro Flask is headquartered in Bend, and their HQ sign is a nice quiet little marker if you're walking by. There's something on-brand about a town surrounded by glacial meltwater being the home of a water-bottle company.

Hydro Flask headquarters sign — clean white logo on a dark wood-panel wall, "A Helen of Troy Company" plaque underneath
Hydro Flask headquarters sign — clean white logo on a dark wood-panel wall, "A Helen of Troy Company" plaque underneath

Going back

This trip is on my want list. Bend is one of those places where every walk hands you a view, every meal is good, every brewery has something worth ordering, and the trails are right there. I'd go back tomorrow.

I'd also have another Curtain Closer.