Bend Parks Looks to Restore Historic High Wheels
The Bend Park and Recreation District plans to restore a cultural artifact after years of deterioration, due to exposure to harsh weather and a lack of significant upkeep. The High Wheels, a piece of equipment used to transport logs in the early 1900s, is displayed in Drake Park as a piece of history, meant to…
Homeless Leadership Coalition Announces Dates for the 2025 Point In-Time Count in Central Oregon
The Homeless Leadership Coalition (HLC), Central Oregon’s Continuum of Care (CoC), will be kicking off the annual Point In Time Count in Central Oregon on Tuesday, January 28th, 2025. The count is part of a state and national effort to identify the number of individuals experiencing homelessness. An accurate count greatly impacts the amount of…
The Environmental Center Presents: January Green Drinks Screening of Footprints on Katmai
The Environmental Center is thrilled to be kicking off the 2025 Green Drinks series with the screening of Footprints on Katmai. For this event, we will be showing a thought-provoking film that focuses on Ocean plastic and marine debris in Alaska. We will wrap up with a Q&A with Current and former staff and High…
Cozy Up with Page-turning Stories: Join the Winter Reading Challenge
Make the most of winter’s long days by joining Deschutes Public Library’s Winter Reading Challenge. The Winter Reading Challenge (January 1 – March 20) is your opportunity to explore new genres, read diverse authors, and participate in fun activities for the chance to win great prizes from the library. Beginning January 1, adults (ages 18+)…
Growing Vegetables in Central Oregon Class
The Central Oregon chapter of OSU Master Gardeners™ present a class: Growing Vegetables in Central Oregon. Learn how to grow your own food. Yes, you CAN have a successful vegetable garden in Central Oregon and OSU Master Gardeners will teach you how. This two-hour free class covers Central Oregon climate, soil amendments, site selection, season…
Bend Endurance Academy to Host 2025 USA Climbing Youth Bouldering Regional Championships
Bend Endurance Academy (BEA) is excited to announce that it has been selected to host the 2025 USA Climbing Youth Bouldering Regional Championships. The event will take place on Saturday, January 11, 2025, at BEA’s state-of-the-art youth bouldering facility in Bend, Oregon. The Regional Championships will bring together more than 300 of the region’s top…
Snowshoe with a Ranger this Winter at Mt. Bachelor
Those outdoor enthusiasts in Central Oregon who were dreaming of a white Christmas definitely got their wish. On Dec. 26, it was widely reported that Mt. Bachelor had the deepest snowpack in the country. If downhill runs and chilly chairlift rides are not your style, the mountain does offer something at a different speed that’ll…
Redmond in Review
A Redmond Shelter Expansion In February, Shepherd’s House Ministries announced its Redmond location would open its doors as a permanent, low-barrier, year-round shelter. The shelter first began operating in November 2023 as an overnight shelter but expanded due to an increased need. In November 2024, the shelter celebrated its one-year anniversary. Since opening, the shelter…
Horoscope Week of January 2, 2025
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You’re the most pragmatic sign of the zodiac and are most highly skilled at getting constructive things done. It’s also true that you thrive on organizing the chaotic details of our messy world into smooth-functioning systems. But I periodically need to remind you that these superpowers of yours require you to…
They Never Stop Coming
Not to compare watching movies to some sort of eternal Herculean struggle, but the weirdest thing about writing about cinema for a living is that I will never, ever be able to watch them all. In 2024, I watched 120-plus new releases, and not only failed to watch remotely all the new films that came…
Letters to the Editor 01/02/2025
On the Medicalization of Psychedelics I was struck by the 12/4 opinion letter criticizing Mary Sheridan’s 11/24 “The Psychedelic Frontier” column on how people can use psilocybin safely at home. Most psilocybin experiences in our planet’s history have been both safe and unsupervised. As a clinical psychiatric pharmacist who is an expert in psychedelic substances,…
Cannabis News for the New Year
It’s 2025, let’s look at some predictions for the year ahead in cannabis. Trump Is Going to Fully Legalize Cannabis Whenever we elect a new president, talk of how “this president is going to take bold action and free the weed” starts up, like some stoner Linus fruitlessly waiting for the Great Pumpkin. That’s no…
Who’s Teaching Who?
Raise your hand if you’ve ever written a song about peanut butter and boogers. Singer/songwriter Jenner Fox has, alongside a gaggle of 7-year-olds. These are the stories told in the classroom that is the Sisters Folk Festival’s continuing education program the Americana Song Academy. Last year’s classes took place in late September at the picturesque…
New Year, New Home Opportunities
The first week of January — New Year’s Resolution Week — is a time to set fresh goals and make meaningful changes. Some focus on health, hobbies or overdue home projects. For others, it’s the perfect time to consider bigger moves — like selling or purchasing a home. No matter the goal, it’s the intention…
Source Warmup
Owyhee Bill Passes U.S. Senate On Dec. 20, the U.S. Senate passed U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden’s bill to preserve over 1 million acres of wilderness in the Owyhee Canyon Lands in Eastern Oregon. The bill, which passed with unanimous consent, will also introduce more flexibility into the area’s established grazing management system. “The holiday celebrations…
Awakening Your Inner Hero: Sh*t Happens
This message has a few moderately graphic parts. Still, I think you should continue reading. A few days ago, after my always soul-touching men’s group wound down, I decided to go to the gym before meeting with my next client. I shall be forever appreciative for that decision. Wendy and I usually work out after…
Italian Authenticity
There’s something special about finding a new food cart that’s so good that it changes what you thought was possible coming out of such a small kitchen. Places like Cotto, Manzanita Grill, Sopa, Wonderland Chicken Co. and a few others have genuinely elevated what we picture when we imagine food truck cuisine. And Mundrelli’s Italian…
S’mores & Pours: A Heartwarming Escape from the Winter Chill
There’s something undeniably nostalgic and comforting about s’mores — the golden marshmallows and melted chocolate paired with the joy of gathering around a crackling fire. While the campfire classic is a summer staple, Cascade Lakes Brewing Company invites guests to savor the gooey goodness all winter long with its S’mores & Pours event series. Every…
Historic Skyliners Lodge to Close in June
Skyliners Lodge, built in 1935, is set to close in 2025. The 90-year-old lodge is run by the High Desert Education Service District under a long-term lease with the U.S. Forest Service. In November, HDESD announced that it would return the lease to USFS and shutter the lodge, canceling all reservations after June 30. HDESD…
Squabbles Among House Republicans Mean Big Hits for Rural Oregon Schools
C ongress may have just passed its stopgap budget, but because of that last-minute squabbling, schools in a vast majority of Oregon counties are taking a big hit this year. Since the turn of the 21st century, rural schools in Oregon have gotten a financial boost from Congress through the Secure Rural Schools and Community…
Project Censored: Racial Disparities and Environmental Emergencies Dominate Project Censored’s Top 10 Stories from 2024
With any top 10 list, there’s a natural tendency to look first at number one, and neither I nor Project Censored would discourage you from doing that when it comes to the annual list of the top censored stories of the year. This year, the top story is about workplace deaths and injuries — with…
