Bend

Chevrolet fire truck 3 ways: Sunday Stills

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Today I’ll be featuring a photo of a 1935 Chevrolet fire truck on display at the High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon, edited three ways. This truck, pieced together with parts from trucks in Prineville and Lakeview, Oregon, was restored to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Smokey Bear. For years, Smokey Bear has been reminding people how to prevent wildfires.

I’ll show a pair of pictures with and without editing effects. Slide the slider to see the full images. I use Corel Paintshop Pro software to edit my photos.

The first pair shows the original picture and one using the Hot Wax Coating Artistic Effect. I like how it almost looks like a pen and ink drawing with color added.

Chevrolet fire truckChevrolet fire truck

The second pair shows the original picture and one using a Retro Lab Photo Effect. The effect darkened the whole picture. I loved how it and gave the chrome details a warm brass color.

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Chomp Chomp in Bend: Dining Out

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We try to support local businesses by dining out at least once week. We recently visited Chomp Chomp in downtown Bend, Oregon.

Their website describes what they serve as follows:

Gently expand your culinary horizons while enjoying our broad curation of Japanese, local and global whiskies, seasonal cocktails, and draft beer

The first dish I’m showing is Kara’agé. Tasty bits of fried dark chicken meat rest on a bed of rice with cucumber slices, pickled ginger, a slice of lemon, and house-made dipping sauce.

Chicken Kara’agé
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Searching for a sweetheart: RDP

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This handsome mule deer buck was searching for a sweetheart in my front yard.

searching for a sweetheart

Wishing you a Happy Valentine’s Day, filled with love (and chocolate)!

Ragtag Daily Prompt (RDP) – Sweet

Osprey & fish sculpture: Sculpture Saturday

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This osprey & fish sculpture is at the north end of the Old Mill District shopping mall in Bend. When I walked by it recently, ice covering most of the pond made it stand out.

Osprey & fish sculpture

Here’s a more distant view that includes the two flag bridges. They change the color of the flags on these bridges to celebrate holidays and events.

Ice-covered pond

There’s an osprey nest just north of here, right next to the Bend Whitewater Park. I bet the local birds would love to catch two fish at once, as portrayed in this sculpture.

Sculpture Saturday

Snowy bear sculpture: Sculpture Saturday

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This snowy bear sculpture is located on the east side of Bend, Oregon. It’s part of our privately funded roundabout art collection. Art in Public Places has helped fund art in over 20 of our 51 traffic roundabouts.

snowy bear

I’ve been waiting for snow to fall here in Bend to photograph this sculpture. Can you see why I liked showing it as a snowy bear?

Roundabout bear sculpture

Grizzly was created by Montana-based artist Sherry Sander in 2001.

This sculpture is a block away from Bend High School. The mythical lava bear is their mascot.

Here’s one more photo, taken a month later, showing more snow covering the statue.

Bear sculpture

To see some of Bend’s horse-related sculptures in roundabouts and elsewhere, see my Outdoor Horse Sculptures post.

Sculpture Saturday

Western Bluebird in the park: Bird of the Week

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I saw this Western Bluebird at a park in Bend, Oregon. At our house, a ten-minute drive away, we only see Mountain Bluebirds. Both species have brilliant blue plumage, but the Western Bluebird males wear a “vest” of rust-orange.

Western Bluebird

It was nice to see this guy making sure he was following all the park rules and regulations. 😉

Bird on sign

Bird of the Week

Fire on the Mountain Buffalo Wings: RDP

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We recently visited the new Fire on the Mountain Buffalo Wings restaurant in Bend, Oregon.

The wings were good, but I immediately noticed the quirky interior design. “Rays” of beams painted orange, red, and yellow radiated out from the middle of the room on the ceiling.

Fire on the Mountain

A painting of Jimi Hendrix covered a wall near the entrance. The wall behind the bar was covered with a colorful mosaic of a sunrise. A video of a fireplace crackled from a TV hung over the bar.

We visited during the lunchtime rush. I noticed one other quirky thing that day. Fire on the Mountain Buffalo Wings was filling up fast with customers–30 guys plus me. Funny! :D

Ragtag Daily Prompt (RDP) – Quirky

All are welcome here: Pull Up a Seat, OWS

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I saw this bench with the words “All are welcome here” outside the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Oregon church. In a time when we’re seeing divisions all around us, it’s nice there are places like this that exist to bring us together. The split-log bench offers everyone a peaceful place to rest and relax.

All are welcome here

We were there for the Annual Locavore Holiday Gift Faire. Eighty-five local crafts people and food producers filled the building with amazing products. If you’re in Bend in early December, drop in to help support local small businesses.

Pull Up a Seat

One Word Sunday (OWS) – Rest

Jewel of a truck: WPWC

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A jewel of a truck is currently on display at the High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon. Artist Laurel Porcari covered this 1941 Ford panel truck with a colorful mosaic of tiles. This piece is titled Voyager.

On one side you can see the iconic volcanoes that border Oregon’s High Desert.

jewel of a truck

On the other side, you’ll see a lunar landscape, with views of a planet-filled sky.

Mosaic covered truck

The artistry of this piece looks beautiful from any angle.

Mosaic covered truck

Weekly Prompts Wednesday Challenge (WPWC) – Artistry

A fall view: Pull Up a Seat

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A fall view by the Bend Whitewater Park in Bend, Oregon. The path leads to two benches surrounded by fall leaves. You can also see a few realistic-looking Canada Geese sculptures in the foreground.

A fall view

Pull Up a Seat Photo Challenge

Beer bike rack in Bend: Sculpture Saturday

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I saw this creative beer bike rack in Bend at On Tap. This is one of seven “pods” where food trucks can park. Customers can enjoy a wide variety of food from the trucks and beer and other beverages on tap inside the main building.

Beer bike rack

I LOVE the Rush’s Squares pizza food truck here! My favorite is the Pesto Margherita pizza.

Rush's Squares Pesto Margherita

Sculpture Saturday

Jailbird jay: Bird of the Week

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I saw this jailbird jay while out walking in Bend. It perched on a rock behind the heavy bars of a fence around the Hayden Homes Amphitheatre.

jailbird jay

This is a California Scrub-jay. Here’s a closer look.

California Scrub-jay

In 2016, the American Ornithological Union (AOU) split the Western Scrub-jay into two species, the California Scrub-jay, Aphelocoma californica, and Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay, Aphelocoma woodhouseii. They appear very similar. This post by Andy Birch describes and shows the characteristics of each species.

Bird of the Week

Fine feather I found: Macro Monday

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This a fine feather I found while walking in a park in Bend, Oregon. This large feather belonged to some kind of raptor.

fine feather

Macro Monday

Bend’s leaves of fall: NPC & FOL

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This morning, while out walking along the Mill A Loop Trail, I noticed many of Bend’s leaves of fall.

This aspen tree was surrounded by gold and green.

Bend's leaves of fall

The towers of Deschutes Brewery and the old train station were framed by trees of red, gold, orange, and green leaves.

Deschutes Brewing & fall foliage

The red stems and leaves of red osier dogwood stand out in contrast with green shrubs growing nearby.

Bend's leaves of fall
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Whispers of autumn poem: WWP

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Whispers of autumn
Blown in on
Northern winds
Cool and crisp
Leaves turn
From verdant to
Golden, orange,
Crimson
Rustles
Drifting gently
To Earth

Whispers of Autumn

Weekend Writing Prompt (WWP) – Whisper (24 words)

High Desert dahlia: FOTD

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Here’s a pretty lavender-colored High Desert dahlia seen on a garden tour in Bend, Oregon last year. These popular plants prefer full sun and good drainage. Though this one was seen in July, they are treasured for blooming well into the fall months.

High Desert dahlia

This was one of the many flowers in bloom we saw on the tour. I think the color of this one made it my favorite High Desert dahlia seen that day.

Flower of the Day (FOTD)

White Cosmos up close: MM & FOTD

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Here’s a picture of a white cosmos up close, taken a couple of days ago in Bend, Oregon. Cooler weather is on the way so it may soon disappear. They are one of my favorite flowers!

White Cosmos

Macro Monday (MM)

Flower of the Day (FOTD)

Edibles & more gardens High Desert Garden Tour: FF

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When I went on the High Desert Garden Tour in Bend, Oregon in July 2022, I was impressed by a couple edibles & more gardens. Their yards had edible plants in the front, sides, and back.

These are gooseberries growing on a shrub in full sun. I remember a gooseberry plant at one of my childhood homes.

gooseberries

These radishes were in a raised bed. We grow them as well and I love their spicy taste.

edibles & more garden Radishes

Raspberries! One of my favorite fruits. Over the years, our dogs have enjoyed eating them off the vines so we have to pick them fast.

Raspberries
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Summer Festival in Bend: LAPC & WOTD

/ SoyBend / 26 Comments

Earlier this month, we went to the local Summer Festival here in Bend, Oregon.

If it’s a summer festival, you might see fairies walking down the street, right? Are those blurry spots behind them spots on my windshield? Nope, I’m pretty sure that’s a cloud of fairy dust. 😉

Fairies in Bend

As the sign says, this festival features music, food, and art. It takes place downtown on three city blocks, plus a couple side streets. It’s estimated that 70,000 people attend this two and a half day festival.

Summer Festival

The art booths have everything from jewelry and landscape art, to pillows featuring an image of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Various businesses feature their products and services in the Bend Business Showcase section.

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Deschutes Brewery mural: Monday Mural

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This Deschutes Brewery mural was on the outside of their main factory on the westside of Bend, Oregon. I liked how they used different shades of rusted metal to make this work of art. The mountains reflect the peaks and foothills of the Cascades, near the brewery.

Deschutes Brewery mural

To learn more about one of the tours I recently went on here, see Barrel House Tour. Lots of tasty beers to sample while you’re checking out the Deschutes Brewery mural.

There are currently two food trucks in front of the brewery. I enjoyed the lunch I bought there recently from Da Nang Vietnamese Eatery. I later found out it was awarded the 2023 Food Cart of the Year by the Source Weekly. It was a well-deserved recognition!

Da Nang Vietnamese Eatery

Monday Mural

Little bit of everything garden: Friday Flowers

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I saw this little bit of everything garden on the High Desert Garden Tour in Bend, Oregon in July 2022. The long, narrow yard at this house included fruits, vegetables, and lots of flowers. The homeowners have been working on it for 22 years.

The owners created large, elevated raised beds from wood and tin roofing. You can see sweet alyssum blooming near the front edge. Hummingbird feeders hang near them. They’re growing pear, cherry, and apples on espaliers behind the raised beds.

Raised beds

This raised bed was at ground level. It included red lantana, yellow petunias, orange ganzia, purple salvia, and dark pink snapdragons.

little bit of everything garden

This tiered bed surrounded a tree. It included common sunflowers, orange marigolds, and golden celosia.

little bit of everything garden
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Hollinshead Park Gardens: Friday Flowers

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The Hollinshead Park gardens in Bend, Oregon include a community garden and a water-wise garden.

Hollinshead Park Gardens – Community Garden

The community garden at Hollinshead Park is managed by a cooperative agreement between Oregon State University Extension Service, Central Oregon Master Gardener Association, and Bend Park and Recreation District.

Local gardeners grow fruit, vegetables, and flowers on 90 reserved plots.

Hollinshead park gardens

Gardeners plant in concise or freeform patterns. Some use various supports or covers.

Hollinshead park panorama

It’s a great place to take pictures throughout the year.

Let us (lettuce)
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Dressed up tree: Thursday Tree Love

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I saw this dressed up tree in downtown Bend a few days ago. I learned that this form of street art is called “yarn bombing.” Local crafters create unique knit and crocheted pieces to cover trees, statues, benches, bicycles, and other structures. Their work certainly brightens up a cloudy day.

Dressed up tree

Thursday Tree Love

Mallard drawing and photos: First Friday Art

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Today I’m sharing a pen and ink drawing I did of a mallard duck in flight. These ducks live in many parts of the world and most of us are familiar with their quack, quack calls.

Duck pen & ink

This hen was very photogenic. She stood a few feet away from me one warm summer day, posing in different positions.

Mallard hen
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A small but bountiful garden: Friday Flowers

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This small but bountiful garden was behind a house in northeast Bend, Oregon. This was one of the featured stops on the High Desert Garden Tour in July 2022.

These purple clematis were beautiful. There’s also a peek of an Annabelle hydrangea shrub in this photo.

Clematis

These long-blooming flowers are a type of daisy. I think they’re Shasta daisies. You can see a multi-colored Euonymus shrub on the left side.

small but bountiful garden
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Barrel House Tour, Deschutes Brewery: LAPC

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This past weekend, I went on the Barrel House Tour at Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon. The brewery offers several tours including public tours, private tours, and this one, where you learn specifically about barrel brews.

Barrel House Tour

You begin and end the tour in the Bend Tasting Room & Beer Garden. As you can see, it’s full of visitors there to taste the brewery’s iconic beers.

Deschutes Brewery

On the tour, you walk to a nearby warehouse where you’ll see some of the ingredients used to make their beers. Deschutes Brewery currently sells their products in 32 states and a few countries. Black Butte Porter is their most well-known beer, but there are three dozen different beers, and a couple ciders, available at the tasting room location.

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Succulent mural in Bend: Monday Mural

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This succulent mural is at River’s Place, a food truck pod on the east side of Bend. We are lucky to have at least seven of these “pods” where trucks can hook up to water and power to serve customers. Each pod has indoor seating with numerous beers on tap. They also host musicians, trivia nights, and other events.

This mural was created by Nicole Fontana, of Fontana Painting. Succulents are one of my favorite types of plants because they have so much variety. She captured that variety well.

I have featured Nicole’s work in a previous post featuring whimsical doors in Tumalo. I loved the detail in those paintings and in this succulent mural.

succulent mural

Monday Mural

Under the Snow Exhibition

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Under the Snow exhibition

When I entered the Under the Snow exhibition at the High Desert Museum on a busy weekend, I thought of one word: engaging. I watched young children dash from one part of the gallery to another, voicing their excitement the whole way. Adults paused and pointed out interesting facts and features. The interactivity of the displays drew everyone in. This exhibition, created by High Desert Museum staff members, displays information in English and Spanish.

Boy at High Desert Museum

Under the Snow presents information on twenty species of wildlife, plants, and fungi on large and small screens. They live in the area beneath the snow called the subnivium. The snow provides insulation, maintaining a steady temperature even when it’s below freezing outside.

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Dinner at Spork: Monochrome Monday

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Dinner at Spork

I took this picture while having dinner at Spork restaurant in Bend, Oregon. The decor is a mixture of straight, industrial lines and curving lampshades and baskets made from natural materials. Houseplants add a touch of color. The menu includes an eclectic mix of wonderful tastes and textures.

Monochrome Monday

A dusting of snow: LAPC & SC

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A dusting of snow accentuates
sculptures created by the wind

Dusting of snow

And softens rough edges
of twisting structures

Snowy juniper

A dusting of snow
muffles the calls of nature

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A gardener’s wish: Wordless Wednesday

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A gardener's wish

A gardener’s wish at the Hollinshead Community Garden in Bend, Oregon.

Wordless Wednesday

Sisters Coffee Mural: Monday Mural

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This Sisters Coffee Mural is in the Old Mill District of Bend. I believe the featured bird is an Osprey. Ospreys are regularly seen near the Deschutes River. This bird is also known as a ‘Fish Hawk’ since fish are its preferred prey.

This mural was painted last summer by Vivi Design Co. I previously featured murals they created at Dr Jolly’s.

Sisters Coffee Mural

Monday Mural

Through my pocket lens: LAPC & WPWC

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Peering through my pocket lens
Vivid reflections shine
where the river bends

through my pocket lens in Bend

The colors soar high into the blue
pausing in rainclouds
falling as dew

High desert sunrise

Droplets of pigment splatter parched plants
cling to pale petals
interweave and dance

Alstromeria vignette

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge (LAPC) # 233 – A one lens walk

Weekly Prompts Writing Challenge (WPWC) – Bend

Alpenglow Park bench: Pull Up a Seat

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This Alpenglow Park bench in Bend, Oregon is unique. Park designers used large pieces of columnar basalt to create this trailside retreat. In the distance, you can catch a glimpse of Pilot Butte, an extinct volcano.

Alpenglow Park bench

After walking the trails at Alpenglow, consider walking to the top of Pilot Butte to get amazing views of the landscape of Central Oregon.

Pull Up a Seat