Tina Lassen

Many artworks are carefully coddled — climate controlled, touched only with gloved hands, kept pristine and protected from the imprints of everyday life. “Creations of Spirit,” the marquee exhibition of the year at the High Desert Museum in Bend, is different. Pieces commissioned from seven Indigenous artists of the Northwest come to the 1,900-square-foot Spirit of the West Gallery as living works of art, enriched by use in their communities. A woven basket arrives flecked with soil from the gathering of springtime roots; a tule-reed... More

Spend any time around a North American beaver and you’ll soon understand how this furry mammal earned its industrious reputation. “Busy beavers” are hardworking and highly efficient, gnawing through wood like a buzzsaw with those prominent front teeth, deftly downing trees that they use to dam waterways and build lodges for protection from predators. More

Winter brings a new round of outdoor fun to Central Oregon, and there’s something to enjoy for all ages, abilities and experience levels. Always wanted to explore the snow-covered forest or cast a line in a trout-filled river? In sun and snow, Central Oregon has winter adventures for everyone. More

Terrie Brigham and her sister, Kim Brigham-Campbell, members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, are sharing their generations-old family tradition with the public. More

When fresh snow dusts the forested peaks and folded hills of Southern Oregon, winter adds another layer to the many delights of the Rogue Valley. All year round, you can enjoy the valley’s renowned dining scene, world-class wines and famous fishing. More

Only the African cheetah can outpace the pronghorn, the second-fastest land animal in the world. Pronghorn spring into motion with easy grace, able to accelerate to speeds of more than 60 miles per hour. And while the cheetah might win a sprint, the pronghorn would dominate in a distance race: With a 30-foot stride and exceptional endurance, they could dust a marathon in 45 minutes. More

A saw blade of snowy volcanic peaks provides quite the backdrop for the Madras Mountain Views Scenic Bikeway. This 29-mile ride rolls through farm fields and skims along the canyon rim of Lake Billy Chinook. A word of advice from one cyclist to another: the scenery might get distracting, so you’ll want to pull over now and again to take it all in. More

On a trip to the Columbia Plateau, where the Columbia River Gorge melds into the wide-open cowboy country of Eastern Oregon, you might need to recalibrate your sense of scale. Everything feels immense: the wide Columbia River jacks up with swells as big as the ocean, swaying wheat fields ripple toward a distant horizon and… More

You could go years passing through this community at the east edge of the Portland metro area without realizing what you’re missing: bird-filled wetlands, boating lakes, bike trails and a pedestrian-scale walkable village. With its waterfront parks, open spaces and a postcard-perfect vantage point of Mt. Hood, this city of 9,000 offers not just a… More

The artful arch of the Alsea Bay Bridge signals your arrival in Waldport, a coastal community 15 miles south of Newport on the Central Coast. Like the bridge, Waldport spans the mouth of Alsea Bay, a waterway renowned for crabbing and rich with wildlife. With easy access to the ocean, the bay and the vast… More