bend it like oregon

Another guest blogger today, hurray… This is from Tawna Fenske, bio below, does PR for Bend Oregon.

When most people think of Oregon, they imagine lush, damp forests and constant rain. But it’s a different picture in the mountainous high desert of Central Oregon.

Dubbed the “outdoor playground of the West,” Bend, Oregon is a recreation lover’s paradise filled with craggy volcanic rock formations, snowcapped mountains, rushing rivers, endless trails, and a whole lot of open space dotted with sagebrush and juniper.

It’s the perfect setting for dog-loving travelers and very Happy Dogs…

http://jillrosellphotography.blogspot.com/2011/01/dogs-of-bend-oregon-pet-photography.html

Bend is famously friendly to canines, and was recently nominated by Dog Fancy magazine as “one of the best places in the country to be a dog and dog owner.”

So what is there to do if you’re a four-legged traveler coming to this city?

Though Bend’s population is just 82,000, the city has a whopping SEVEN  off-leash dog parks http://www.bendparksandrec.org/Parks Trails/Dogs in Parks/. These aren’t just little patches of grass, either. Pine Nursery Park, for example, is an 18-acre fenced space packed with trails, trees, and wide open spaces for fetching and running.

If open trails are more your scene, there are plenty of them in and around Bend.  http://www.dogpac.org/trails&parks.html  Visit the website for Bend’s dog advocacy group, DogPac, for a complete listing of summer and winter trails guaranteed to be Fido-friendly.

For those seeking special events and activities to enjoy with a canine companion, Bend has plenty to offer. In the winter months, skijoring is a popular diversion for dogs and humans (think of it as cross country skiing while being pulled by a dog). Wanoga  http://www.dogpac.org/wintertrails.html  Sno-Park is a great place to sample that, along with regular old snowshoeing or Nordic skiing with your pooch.

In the warmer months, Bend’s  http://www.bendconcerts.com Les Schwab Amphitheater brings in tons of great concerts that are open to dogs and humans alike. Dogs are also welcome on most  mountain biking trails  http://www.dogpac.org/summertrails.html  around Bend for those who like to tear up the singletrack with Rover along for the ride.

Once you’ve had your fill of frolicking and butt-sniffing in the great outdoors, consider visiting some of Bend’s dog-friendly shops for toys and necessities.  http://bendpetexpress.com/   Bend Pet Express has an excellent selection of food, toys, and treats, with locations on both the northeast and west side of town. They also carry products from   Ruff Wear, a Bend-based manufacturer of products for active canines. Pick up one of their doggie floatation coats before renting a canoe from Alder Creek Canoe and Kayak  or Tumalo Creek Canoe & Kayak and heading out onto the water with your pooch.

And if you want to go camping and hiking, here is a map,  http://www.visitbend.com/Bend-Hiking-and-Camping-Map.pdf

For dogs with a taste for the bling, check out  Dog Patch Boutique on Minnesota Avenue in Downtown Bend. The shop has a great selection of dog accessories ranging from Swarovski Crystal collars to leashes to beds to dog apparel and cologne.

During the summer months, most restaurants with outdoor dining areas are eager to welcome you and your dog for a meal.  Chow,   Bourbon Street, Parilla Grill, Flatbread Community Oven, and Brother Jon’s are just a few great spots that allow dogs to dine with their owners at the outdoor tables.

The Bend Ale Trail :  a majority of these breweries are dog friendly in their outdoor seating areas, and you’ll almost always spot a pooch or two leashed to the lamp poles in front of local pubs.

For dog bakeries, try Polka-Doodle Dog Bakery and Healthy Paws offer grain free dog food.

Bend also boasts oodles of  pet-friendly Bend hotels for visitors  who need a home away from home. Options range from luxury boutique accommodations like The Oxford Hotel (which offers perks like organic dog treats, travel bowls you get to keep, and a personal pet bed proportional to the size of your pet) to budget-friendly lodging options like Super 8.

http://traveltips.usatoday.com/pet-friendly-rentals-bend-or-33725.html

If bringing your dog to his own pet-loving resort is more your kind of vacation, Bend offers a number  of doggie hotels to pamper even the pickiest puppy.

Even without all the opportunities for hiking, frolicking, and dining with your dog in Bend, it’s the little things that make you both feel at home. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a gas station attendant or drive-thru coffee barista who doesn’t offer biscuits to your pooch, and most local businesses keep water dishes out in the warm months.

It’s Bend’s way of saying welcome to two and four-legged friends alike!

Bend it like Oregon guest blog by Tawna Fenske

About Tawna

Tawna joined Visit Bend in October 2010 to handle day-to-day execution of Visit Bend’s communications programs. She manages relationships with key media contacts and stakeholders in the tourism industry, playing the primary public relations role for the organization.

A third generation Oregonian, Tawna has lived and worked in Bend since 1997. Before joining the Visit Bend team, Tawna spent nearly eight years as the Publications Coordinator for the Marketing team at St. Charles Medical Center. She also worked in marketing and corporate communications for an international translation company and a nationally franchised family photo studio.

When she’s not devoting her energy to promoting Bend tourism, Tawna stays focused on her other job as a published novelist writing quirky romantic comedies. She loves roaming the globe and tending to a menagerie of ill-behaved (but well loved) family pets.

http://www.visitbend.com/blog/2011/03/02/the-ultimate-dog-date-in-bend-oregon/

Besides Bend, you might want to visit other places in Oregon such as Medford, Ashland and Grants Pass and/or  Sutherlin and Florence (the beaches).

Here’s some info on Grants Pass. Cici and I camped out at the Valley of the Rogue campground a few times, as well as stayed in a yurt at Honeyman campground in Florence and stayed in various motels in Medford, Florence and Ashland, as posted about two years ago.  we also visited gorgeous Crater Lake.

http://www.rogueweb.com/crater/

http://celiasue.wordpress.com/2008/08/15/its-reigning-cats-and-dogs-in-florence-oregon/

http://celiasue.wordpress.com/2008/08/05/into-the-sunset/

http://celiasue.wordpress.com/2008/08/20/along-highway-5/

http://traveltips.usatoday.com/hotels-allow-dogs-grants-pass-oregon-52674.html

http://www.coosbayinn.com/hotel-oregon-coast-sitemap.asp

a bird in the blog hop thanks to Life with Dogs

https://www.facebook.com/bethechangeforpets?sk=app_4949752878

Time for BlogPaws’ Be the Change for Pets project, spring cleaning, clean out our closets!

  Join pet bloggers and pet lovers from around the world, on May 18 -25th- for the world’s first online garage sale to benefit animal rescue or any other animal based cause you would like. You can participate from your own home and participate however you like.

Thank you to Two Little Cavaliers for this heads up… and two of the cutest lil doggies Cici would love to play with…

and here Blog Hop is the code