Last Saturday, August 29th, we decided to take an easier hike to Sisters Mirror Lake.  Located just south of Devil's Lake off South Century Drive, the Sisters Mirror Lake trail head has limited parking space, but we easily found a spot on the highway.  The 3 plus mile hike into Sisters Mirror Lake was a fairly easy walk in old growth forest with an elevation gain of between 600 and 700 feet. The lake itself is one of a series of small high elevation lakes, each with its own charm and privacy. We saw just a few people on this trip - many with packs to spend the night.

After enjoying visiting the various lakes, including Lancelot, Camelot, Needle and several unnamed lakes and snacking on wild blueberries that were at their peak of ripeness, we traveled on the Pacific Crest Trail, which skirts Sisters Mirror Lake, to Wickiup Plains having heard that the Plains provide wonderful South Sister views.  That statement was proven true when we stepped out of the old growth forest and saw South Sister. The south side of South Sister rises dramatically up from the Wickiup Plains and dominates the skyline. The view is truly magnificent and with each step closer to the Wickiup Point, the view grew larger. 

We took the Wickiup loop back, connecting with the Devil's Lake trail before taking the Elk Lake trail back to connect with the Sisters Mirror Lake trail roughly 1/2 a mile before the parking lot. Wonderful views of Broken Top were visible on this part of our hike before we entered the old growth forest again. All in all, our relatively easy hike ended up being in excess of 12 miles - but it was well worth it for the wonderful surprises we saw.  We have lived in Bend since 1985 but have never heard of Wickiup Plains before. What a surprise!

Bend Has Been Discovered by the Luxury Home Buyer

We have been tracking Bend real estate sales for decades, but the summer of 2020 has provided for high end home sales that have never been seen before in the Bend market. High end homes have been part of Bend real estate since the early part of last century when the Shevlin-Hixon and Brooks-Scanlon lumber mills opened and logging became the main industry within the town. The land near Mirror Pond and Drake Park became the location where some of Bend's earliest luxury homes were built. Over the years, as various sections of Bend were developed, the luxury market expanded into Pilot Butte, Awbrey Butte, and the various golf communities in town such as Awbrey Glen, Broken Top, Pronghorn and Tetherow. However, as these communities were developed, what constituted luxury in those days rarely exceeded $1,000,000.  Today, however, Bend million dollar home sales are breaking records.

The following chart shows July 2020 p...

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McKenzie Pass (Hwy 242), connecting Central Oregon with the Willamette Valley, is opened for such a limited time each year that many of the available hikes and places of beauty are not as visited as those located off Cascade Lakes Highway in the 3 Sisters Wilderness. But the hikes off McKenzie Pass offer views of the Cascades that cannot be seen from other locations in Central Oregon - including vistas of the west side of the 3 Sisters (and Little Brother) plus Mt. Washington, Mt. Jefferson and Broken Top.

Our hike up Scott Mountain started at Scott Lake and then passed through old growth forest to Benson Lake and then further to Tenas Lakes before climbing more steeply around the back of Scott Mountain to the summit (a total of 1300 feet elevation change in around 4.1 miles). Wild huckleberries were abundant as were thousands of orange California Tortoiseshell butterflies.  The view from the top of Scott Mountain was fabulous - both toward the Cascade peaks but also west toward the Willamette Valley. The foundation of the old lookout tower was still in place, but we saw hardly anyone on this hike to the peak and absolutely no one at all as we came down the long way around by Hand Lake (where we saw a few families playing in the shallow water) back to Scott Lake (the huckleberries on this stretch of trail were hardly touched - and we wished we had thought to bring a bucket to gather some for home).  The walk along the lava flow before we reached Hand Lake was interesting and full of the butterflies. All in all, the total hike was a bit more than 9.7 miles with our side trip to Hand Lake's shore. 

For those who have never hiked in the Mt Jefferson Wilderness, the feeling of the forest is different than that of the 3 Sisters Wilderness. And the hike to the east side of 3 Fingered Jack through Canyon Creek Meadow is a lot of fun.  The Canyon Creek Meadow hike, which can be done on its own, is a 4.5 mile fairly easy loop taking hikers through the recovering 2003 B&B Complex burn through the beautiful, wildflower filled meadow, complete with the creek and stunning views of 3 Fingered Jack. A 3 mile round trip spur hike off the Canyon Creek loop will lead to a viewpoint on a flank of 3 Fingered Jack. This point provides fairly steep elevation change, loose stones and pumice on the trail and views toward the 3 Sisters, Mt. Washington, Mt. Jefferson, the meadow just hiked and the turquoise Cirque Lake created by glacial runoff. If you look carefully enough, you may be able to spot the mountain goats perched on unbelievable ledges on the rock face of 3 Fingered Jack.

Our trip back to the trail head involved another .7 mile spur off to Wasco Lake which was also mostly burned in the B&B Complex fire. Although not heavily traveled, the hike off to Wasco Lake also can provide access to Pacific Crest Trail and further lakes and vistas within the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness.

Bend Real Estate Sales Were Exceptional in July 2020

We have been actively involved with Central Oregon real estate sales since 2000, and despite the boom and bust years, 2020 has proven, year to date, to be among the most phenomenal years we have ever seen - with July the pinnacle so far.

Ask any Bend real estate agent what is the situation with Bend home sales and they will tell you there is a severe lack of inventory. Many listings receive multiple offers, pushing the price up and discouraging buyers who lose out. Cash buyers have an upper hand, especially as prices reach a place where there is doubt the property will appraise. We are seeing new listings hitting the market at prices which just 6 months ago would have been unheard of. And we are surprised to see many of these homes selling even beyond that inflated price.

When July 2020 sales are compared with July 2019,  Bend single family home sales on less than an acre show the following trends:

• Average sales price up 12.1% to $612, 465*
• Median sales price up 12.6% to $529,000
• Average list price up 9.2% to $638,953
• Median list price up 5.9% to $524,450
• Number of new listings down 8.4% to 274
• Homes for sale down 75.6% to 244
• Pending sales up 153.1% to 620
• Sold homes up 31.1% to 320
• Months of supply down 81.1% to 1 month
• Average price per square foot up 7.9% to $286
• Median price per square foot up 10.2% to $269
• Median percentage of list price received 100%
• Dollar volume of sales up 47% to $195,988,952

Will the Upward Trends Continue for Bend Home Sales?

The two charts below show pending sales and months of inventory for Bend single family homes on less than an acre.  The demand is extreme and the amount of homes minute. While new construction is happening in Bend, it cannot keep up with the demand. As long as people continue to move to Central Oregon, these trends will remain.