Bend, OR

Now it’s called the Old Mill District, where when I was growing up it was nothing but the mill. An old falling down, dilapidated mill, no longer in use, that us kids used to go in and play around. The buildings have now resurfaced and have come alive in the form of a thriving, community like, part subdivision, part mall.

Settled on the banks of the scenic Deschutes River, where the logs and log rollers of the mill, back in 1916 used to lie, are now the buildings of the present and obviously the future. This entire area, spanning several square miles is home to Central Oregon’s most popular mall and living community. This mall is smack dab in the middle of a few different smaller housing developments. Kind of a unique setup actually. The district has a vast array of services and stores in which they offer ranging from hotel accommodations, to many various restaurants that serve pretty much all from cappuccino to hot dogs, from barbeque and pasta to martinis and seafood and a broad spectrum of shops, galleries and a children’s science museum. There is also the Les Schwab Amphitheater which happens to be our outdoor concert connection. Cinema 16, yes 16 screens, all generally showing a different movie, Victoria Secrets, Banana Republic, Helly Hensen, Bend Film Studio, our new and definitely upcoming major motion picture production house and much more, too much to name here. Come by a see for yourself. You’ll be amazed of what all fits into here without feeling crammed in. As the additional incentive, there is also the smorgasbord of doctors, title and escrow companies, pottery shop, banks and the like. Admittedly, I am not much of a mall person, but I do enjoy the way this is setup, on the river, the people, the different events such as the kite festival, the horse drawn carriages, the gallery hops (my favorite) and just a bit of it all.

For the small town, countrified person to the jetset crew of the business world and all inbetween, this place suits everyone, somehow, someway. Too see more of what this area offers, take an indepth gander at their website because I know I haven’t covered it all.

Now I must admit, I know how to drive there but this time I am not sure I can give directions on how to get there in a plain manner so I am enclosing the website that gives directions, couple them with what I throw in and you will be just fine. The directions on the page direct you as if you were on the parkway; for you visitors who are not familiar…the parkway spans from one end of
Bend, to the other. North or South, you will have the signs that will appropriately take you onto the parkway. I have also included the mapquest link, in which you can pan around, so as to get the route easiest for you.