Yesterday, Ryan and I took advantage of another beautiful day in Central Oregon to trek along to Pilot Butte State Park. A butte, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is "a hill that rises abruptly from the surrounding area and has sloping sides and a flat top". Here in Bend, Pilot Butte is a defining feature of the town, along with the Deschutes River and the Cascade Mountain Range in the distance. Pilot Butte has a 0.8 mile hiking trail that winds around it to the top. There is also a 1 mile paved road to the top that is closed to cars for a few weeks. We trekked up the trail and trekked down the road, so we got a taste of both.
Ryan shows the sock Mount Jefferson and clowns around in front of Awbrey Butte (the Three Sisters Mountains are barely visible in background).
Mt. Bachelor (our local ski mountain) looms over Bend, while I add a few rows to the sock.
Ryan and I checked out the displays at the top before heading back down. Bend was settled as a ranching and farming community, but quickly became a lumber town. It was originally called Farewell Bend which was shortened to Bend a while later. Pilot Butte is smack-dab in the middle of town, so every way you look you'll see the evidence of humans, but it's a great view of the surrounding mountains and a nice trek up and away from the goings-on in town. Next up just might be a trekking tour of the Deschutes River!