Oregon's tri-cities

D Vautier
9/22

To my way of thinking the tri-cities in Oregon are Sisters, Bend and Redmond, all the same distance apart and all sharing very contrasting and interesting values.  In Portland, where I lived for many years, they think of Beaverton, Portland and Gresham but this makes no sense because that's all one big city.

Around Washington the tri-cities refer to the three cities of Richmond, Pasco and Kennewick near the confluence of the Columbia and Snake rivers.  These are basically one city like Portland. But Sisters, Redmond and Bend which are about 20 miles apart form an almost perfect triangle. Not only that, the more remarkable thing about these three Oregon cities is their distinctive cultural differences.
 

Traveling down through Madras on our way to Sisters we hit big patches of smog from all the fires.

Sisters is totally a resort town that relies on tourism.  It’s small population and high motel rental fees combined with its many interesting campground attractions plus an almost overwhelming and perceptible friendliness of the people makes it an interesting and magnetic attraction to many. During the peek summer season Sisters' population probably swells to twice it's size.  Remarkable.  There are park benches on every corner and in front of every store.

In opposition to that you have the almost isolationist flavor of Redmond where you often feel somehow that you just don’t belong and got off on the wrong turn or something.  There is no real main street like it is there and it isn't.  I remember passing through Redmond from years ago before the boom times.  All it had was a general store with a wooden Indian on front.  Some times bigwigs got it confused with the Microsoft headquarters in Washington and fly in finding only a wooden indian. 

Then there’s Bend, the bend in the Deschutes River, with a history of wild west and gunplay and OK coralism.  An ever resentful city because of it’s lost commerce.  Poor sad Bend, the last and biggest of the three cities, It became the huge chokepoint on highway 97 and all traffic going south.  The state built a bypass that left many of the city businesses without business.  Then came the retirement communities that brought retirees from far and wide.  House prices went out of sight and the infrastructure just wasn't there.  Poor sad Bend.

Here is my son in the park. 

I found a nice little second hand LP record shop in Sisters and Val got all set up at the camp site.

 

Let's see Crater Lake