Bend, OR

Even though the nearest beach is more than 150 miles away, Bend residents don’t seem to notice. When the weather warms up, the Deschutes River fills in for our ocean and Farewell Bend Park becomes our beach. During the summer months, Farewell Bend Park fills with sunbathers, beach cruiser bicycles, playing children, and droves of river floaters clumsily hauling inflatable mats and inner tubes.

Farewell Bend Park offers 22 acres of tidy paths, big grassy areas, picnic tables, a playground, and brilliant views of the Deschutes River and the abutting marshy areas. I pass the park, which stretches alongside Reed Market Road, nearly every day, and look forward to the view–a layered panorama of snow-capped mountains, evergreens, the sparkling Deschutes and grassy fields– every time.

Last week when friends were visiting from Portland, we stopped at Trader Joe’s (on Highway 97), bought some bread, cheese and hummus, and hauled our loot to Farewell Bend’s grassy lawn. We enjoyed a sunny riverside picnic and did our best to avoid the flying Frisbees. Since Farewell Bend is a newer park, its baby trees provide little shade, but the park has several covered picnic areas for this purpose.

The park’s wide lawns practically beg for games of Frisbee, soccer, or volleyball (bring your own net). Or, if you’re less athletically inclined, you can walk or bike on the paths, stopping to read the plaques that explain the history of Farewell Bend, the city’s original, wordier name. The park also has a jetty that extends into the middle of the river for more up close and personal river views.

The entire park is stroller and kid-friendly. Children can play on the big plastic play structure, which includes a climbing rock (plastic, of course). Restrooms are available in the middle of the park, conveniently next to the play structure and the largest covered picnic area.

Parking at Farewell Bend can be a little tricky depending on when you go. All the spots are parallel and the lots fill up early on weekends since Farewell Bend is a popular starting place for river floating. If you can’t find a spot in the lots alongside the park, you can head up Reed Market Road and park at the Old Mill Shopping Center (turn left at Bond Street and take another left into the parking lot). There is a path that leads to Farewell Bend that is accessible behind Red Robin. It’s about a half mile walk, but beautiful and better than skipping the park entirely because of the parking situation.