Welcome to the 93 new Banner members. 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.

The Best Return

Last weekend we were visiting New York City. My brother lives there. It's a great city. I mean that. But four days of subway smell, honking, and concrete horizon lines will do something to your brain.

And then you land.

If you've never flown into Redmond, here's what happens: the plane pulls up to a small terminal, they pop open the door, and you walk down an open-air ramp to the tarmac. No jetway. No recycled air. Just you, stepping outside into Central Oregon for the first time in however long you've been gone.

The smell hits first. Pine. Dry air. That specific high desert combination that doesn't exist anywhere else I've been. I've lived in bigger cities. I've lived in smaller towns. I have never felt what I felt stepping off that plane at RDM.

It felt like exhaling.

While we were gone, my mom watched the kids and took them on what she called a "Bend park tour." She texted me from Farewell Bend Park, then Alpenglow Park, then somewhere along the river. Her verdict: she's never seen a town with this many good parks.

She's right. We just forget because we live here.

That's the thing about leaving for a week. You stop taking it for granted. The mountains are actually there. The air is actually clean. The parks are actually world-class. And the airport is actually the best arrival experience in the country, and I will die on that hill.

Welcome home.

Quick one before we get to the tasty stuff.

My wife Paige recently got my son and me matching golf hats from a locally owned Bend brand called Bunker Boys.

Honestly, it’s one of the only hats our son will wear and keep on(and it actually fits him). They just dropped a Father's Day gift set, with a toddler size, so your kid can match. Pretty hard to beat.

Local Bunker Boys Hats

A Recent Bite Worth Mentioning

When you have young kids, 7 am feels like midday. The city hasn't caught up to that math yet. Dani's Tacos has.

They're open, the lights are on, and the Machaca breakfast is waiting for you. Salty, meaty, wrapped in a warm tortilla with beans and rice. Pour some of that salsa bar heat on top, and you've got a proper Mexican breakfast before most of Bend has hit snooze.

Truly one of the best breakfasts we’ve had in a long time.

This Week’s Conditions
☀️ Sunrise: 5:42 am
🌅 Sunset: 8:20 pm
High Temp: 85°F
Cascade Lakes Highway: Trail Status
Try this Restaurant this Week: Kanji Ramen and Izakaya
Trail of the Week: Steelhead Falls

🐾Bend’s Best Good Boys & Good Girls 🐾

🐶 Kaylee – 7 years, Mix
Kaylee is a calm presence who is good with kids, families, and cats. She’s even been known to help groom her fellow cats.

🐱 Sophie – 9 years - Siberian Husky/Mix
This 9-year-old girl is housetrained and crate-trained. She’s been great around other dogs and even other cats, which is sometimes hard for a Husky.

🐶 Bella - 1 year- Mix
This sweet girl is ready to move in with her forever family. She loves other dogs and has been very friendly around kids and cats as well.

The Bend Banner is as local as it gets. Written here, for the people who actually call this place home.

No big media machine, no out-of-town editor guessing what Bend cares about. Just a weekly letter built from real conversations, real places, and real curiosity.

If you choose to support it, every bit helps me bring you more of the good stuff. The stories, the characters, the weird corners of this town that deserve a spotlight.

Appreciate you, friends. Thanks for being part of this.

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