We’re Paige and Mason. The Bend Banner is our way of keeping tabs on this wild, beautiful place we call home. To the mornings that start with coffee and mountain air, the trails that somehow always lead to a brewery, and the kind of small-town stories that remind you why you chose to live here in the first place.

First Snow Hikes

There’s a certain kind of quiet that only happens after the first snow really falls. The dogs breathe clouds, and everyone starts their day a little later. And if you glance west, the Cascades are suddenly powdered white like someone dusted them in sugar. There’s something very special about the first snow in town each year. Something that brings a smile to many faces and a calm, peacefulness to this place we call home.

Here’s where to go when Bend turns into a snow globe overnight:

Tumalo Falls - Go early. Like, see-your-breath early. The road usually closes not long after the first good snow, but you can park below and walk or bike the rest. It’s worth every step: the falls roaring through sheets of ice, the canyon dead quiet except for the water. Bring spikes and something warm in a thermos.

Smith Rock - About thirty minutes north of Bend, and it always feels a few degrees warmer. But when that first frost hits, the cliffs glow orange against the snow-dusted sage, and the whole place feels like Mars with better views. The Misery Ridge loop is a local classic: steep, cold, and completely worth it once you’re standing on top watching fog drift through the Crooked River canyon. PS. Don’t do Misery Ridge if it’s icy!

Pilot Butte at Sunrise - Classic Bend move, and the closest and easiest. When the city’s frozen over and the trail crunches under your boots, it’s just you, the mountain silhouettes, and a few other early risers pretending not to shiver. You’ll see the whole town wake up, coffee steaming in gloved hands.

Hawaiian Food Love

You could drive past Aloha Café a hundred times and never notice it. I asked a few friends if they had ever been, and nobody had even heard of it.

Tucked in the center off Highway 20 and 27th, Aloha is pumping out delicious Hawaiian lunch and dinner plates. The serving size is large, and the kids’ plates might be the best kids’ meals in town.

From teriyaki chicken to kalua pork, there is something here everyone will love…or you don’t like good food. The ribs fall off the bone, the volcano chicken brings the heat, and the mac salad could hold its own against anyone’s grandma. But the real secret weapon? The banana bread. Five bucks a loaf, baked daily, and probably the best in Bend. Moist enough to make you question every dry café slice you’ve ever politely smiled through….especially when one slice is $5.

PS. They close at 7 pm, so get your order in early.