Drake Park and Mirror Pond in Bend, Oregon:

Drake Park and Mirror Pond

Drake Park is located on 13 acres in Downtown Bend, Oregon, on the banks of the Deschutes River.   There is plenty of parking along     Street, but you can also park downtown and take the short walk to Drake Park.  The trails are paved and very nice.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

The first city park in Bend, Drake Park is named after Alexander Drake, a developer who platted a neighborhood in 1910 around the area where the park is located.  This neighborhood is now a historic district, filled with beautiful residential homes and businesses.  In 1920, the land for the park was purchased and the town folks got busy making it beautiful.  You can read all about it below:

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

The park is full of trees, grass, trails, and easy access for water activities.  There are a lot of duck and geese.  Pretty to watch, but the geese have become quite a problem over the last decade.  

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Their poop and other sediment is filling up the bottom of Mirror Pond, and plans to dredge there are discussed from time to time.  As for the geese, there were simply too many of them.  A couple of years ago, it was decided to kill off the over-abundance of geese, and give their meat to feed the homeless at Thanksgiving.  That caused quite a debate, and many were not happy about the decision.  I bet that those who got roast geese for dinner were not complaining though.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

The Deschutes is dammed at Newport Avenue and creates the lovely Mirror Pond.  The lucky people with some of the million dollar Bend houses, get to live right on the river.  I would love that! It is very pretty to look at those houses and the reflections of the trees and sky.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

The red buoys and water fencing mean stop and get out!  Take your canoe or other floating device with you.  Otherwise, you will go over the dam or may just get caught inside it.  It happens every year.  

Drake Park is full of a beautiful variety of trees.  Bend used to mainly be a mill town, back in the old days.  In the park, there is a display that talks about that history, which can be read from this plaque:

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

This pondo looks like it has been through a lot.  

But, it is still with us!

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

There is a "highweel" on display by the historical plaque.  It was used to haul timber in the early 1900's.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

I love those big old Ponderosa Pines.  There is magic in them.

There are many events held at the park; some weekly, some annual and some no longer exist.  The weekend that I took these pictures, there was a car show.  To read more about the car show, please "CLICK HERE".

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

(This one is for you, Patti!)

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

In December, there is a lighted canoe parade at Mirror Pond.  We got there too early last year, but thought that we were too late.  It was so cold outside!  I took the pretty picture below, and then we left.  I still wish that I would have gotten pictures of the parade ... hopefully this year I will.

Mirror Pond, Bend Oregon, Dec. 2010

Oregon Giftrs of Comfort and Joy ~ Bend's Water Pagent on Mirror Pond

Back in the day, there was an annual Mirror Pond Pageant.  I made a cool post about all about it, and you can find it by  CLICKING HERE.

 Source; Bend Farmer's Market

In the summer, you can find fresh food several times a week at the Bend Farmer's Market.  Just  "CLICK HERE"  to go to their website.

Source: The Duck Race.com

Also, in September every year, the Rotary Club does a Duck Race fundraising event at Mirror Pond.  To learn more, please just "CLICK HERE".   This year it will be held on September 11th.

So there is a start to learning about Drake Park and Mirror Pond.  It is a wonderful place to visit, so if you find yourself in Bend you just might like to do that sometime.


~ Kathy Matthews

Here is a cute You Tube video of family at enjoying the river at Drake Park:

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.
 

Vintage Oregon ~ Bend's Water Pageant: Mirror Pond on The 4th of July

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Yesterday, when I was taking photos at Trivia Antiques, I found these awesome old postcards for $3.00 each.  I think they were sold by a place called "Photo Art Studio".  They are of the Bend Water Pageant, which was held annually on Bend's Mirror Pond over the 4th of July, from 1933-1965.  I have spent most of this morning researching this subject.  I never use Bing, but it did sure the trick for me today, so I am giving them a shout out right here and now. 

I found two very helpful links, if you would like to learn more about what they did at the pageant and how they accomplished it.  I'll add on to this post as I find more information ... but for now, you can check these out if you would like:
KOHD: Bend Water Pageant
Waymarking.com: Pageant Park

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

There were fireworks, light shows, and there were floats.  This float won first prize in 1940.  It is a replica of the Deschutes County Courthouse.

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Pageant background and stage.

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

"The Garden Swing Float"

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

"Faith of Our Fathers Float"

I am going to take a chance here that I won't get in trouble for copying and pasting the info about the Water Pageant from Waymarking.com's website.  Thanks for sharing with us, you guys!  

So here it goes:

  
Marker Name: Bend’s Fourth of July Stampede and Water Pageant; located in Pageant Park.

Marker Text: An era of community pride and spirit fostered an extraordinary event. Heralded as Oregon’s greatest celebration, The Bend 4th of July Stampede and Water Pageant brought thousands of visitors to the banks of the Deschutes River from 1933 to 1965. At the height of the festivities in 1940, Bend’s population almost doubled overnight to over 18,000 people. The large crowd overwhelmed the local hotels, restaurants and auto camps prompting the Chamber of Commerce to ask residents to open up their homes to visitors.

The two to four day celebration, which included many events, took over 200 volunteers to organize. Most people come to the celebration to watch the grand Water Pageant on the Deschutes River. With the Cascade Mountains as the backdrop and the tranquil Deschutes River as the stage, the Water Pageant was one of the most unique events in the Pacific Northwest.
 

Each year a floating arch was built just downstream from the footbridge. Constructed from wood planks, and covered with 400 yards of muslin, the arch was built by local volunteer labor. Always striving to outdo the previous year’s design, the arch reflected the era in which it was constructed. Over the years the arch grew to the height of a four-story building and was over ninety feet long.

As dusk fell and darkness overcame the river, the anxious crowd anticipated the words “Let there be light”. Fireworks then lit up the night sky and a rainbow of colors illuminated the grand arch. The pageant was underway. Inside the arch, a panel of 32 switches controlled 300 lights that changed colors each time a float passed through.

The two-hour Water Pageant featured an average of 18 floats, which traveled from the arch to some 200 yards down river. The elaborate floats, designed and built by both locals and professionals, were initially pushed down the river by swimmers or oarsmen in boats. Later, a long wooden boom designed by Shevlin-Hixon engineer William Cone, was installed in the river and allowed the floats to be pulled by volunteers.

As they moved down the river, each float was lit from within and had its own special music and narration. Some floats, like the 40-foot scale model of the USS Missouri in 1953, had moving parts. Shevlin-Hixon’s scale replica of Mill A had logs which were set on a continuous chain that fed the logs from the river and into the mill.

Sponsored by various civic organizations in Central Oregon, each year a queen was selected to preside as host of the festivities. During the Water Pageant, the queen rode on a large swan float that was over 18 feet high. The queen’s court followed the swan on small cygnet barges.
 

Draped in a long royal cape, holding an ornate scepter and capped with a jeweled crown, each year the queen was announced with the following prose: “In Majestic and proud splendor floats the mirror pond swan, bearing his burden of royalty and charm. Behold the Queen! Let everyone bow before her majesty. This royal retinue shall reign supreme. Hail the Queen!”

Update:  August 9, 2011 - I just made a post about Drake Park and Mirror Pond, if you want to take a look.  Just "CLICK HERE".

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.