Country Music Legend Dolly Parton Dies at 80
Dolly Parton, the country music legend whose unmistakable voice, larger-than-life personality and remarkable songwriting career made her one of America’s most beloved entertainers, has died. She was 80 years old. Parton died Tuesday, August 25, in Nashville, according to an announcement from her family. A cause of death was not immediately released. The news brings to a close an extraordinary career that stretched across seven decades and reached far beyond the boundaries of country music,...
THINGS TO DO & EVENTS
Festivals, concerts, seasonal celebrations, and memorable Oregon adventures worth putting on your calendar.Fresh ideas for getting out and enjoying Oregon, from upcoming community events to unforgettable places and experiences around the state.
One of Oregon’s Most Haunted Lighthouses Is Hosting a Halloween Night of Ghost Stories
UPDATE, AUGUST 14, 2026: Unfortunately, the Heceta Head Halloween Haunt scheduled for October 31 has been cancelled. Heceta Head Bed & Breakfast announced that the event will not take place this...
Bend’s Popular Fall Festival Is Adding Pies, Chili and a Harvest Bake-Off for 2026
There is something about October in Central Oregon that feels made for wandering downtown with a warm drink in your hand, music drifting down the street and the smell of good food somewhere nearby....
The Oregon State Fair Returns This Month With 11 Days of Rides, Concerts and Deep-Fried Everything
There’s a point every August when Oregon starts trying to squeeze every last drop out of summer. The evenings get a little shorter, school supplies start appearing everywhere, and then the Oregon...
19 Reasons You Should Definitely Move To Oregon
Thinking about moving to Oregon? Excellent decision. Ignore the rain, housing prices, wildfire smoke, traffic, taxes, and enormous earthquake fault lurking offshore. Those aren't problems. They're...
Lloyd Center Celebrates Final Day With One Last Attempted Robbery
PORTLAND, Ore. — After decades of shopping, ice skating, awkward teenage hangouts and wondering whether the mall was actually still open, Lloyd Center is reportedly marking its final day in the most...
Oregon Fondly Recalls When The Most Divisive Issue In The State Was Ducks Vs. Beavers
There was a time in Oregon when the surest way to start an argument was to ask one simple question: Ducks or Beavers? Families were divided. Friend groups picked sides. Entire Saturdays in the fall...
FOOD & DRINK
Explore Oregon’s food and drink scene – from locally sourced ingredients to craft brews and award-winning wines. Plan your culinary adventure now!
The Seafood At This Unassuming Family Restaurant Might Ruin Every Other Oregon Coast Spot For You
Some restaurants feel connected to the place around them from the moment you walk through the door. The food makes sense for the landscape. The menu reflects what people have eaten in the region for...
Mo’s Flew 200 Pounds Of Their Famous Clam Chowder To Washington, D.C. For America’s 250th
An Oregon Coast restaurant known for steaming bowls of clam chowder recently carried a substantial taste of the Pacific Northwest all the way to the nation’s capital. Mo’s Seafood & Chowder was...
The Blueberry Pie At This Cute Little Bakery Might Be Portland’s Most Craved Slice
Rainy afternoons, neighborhood strolls, and a stop for something sweet feel like a natural part of life in Portland. In a city where people care deeply about good food and local businesses, there's...
Klamath Falls Man Killed While Fighting Wrights Spring Fire in Southern Oregon
A dangerous shift in the Wrights Spring Fire turned deadly Friday, claiming the life of a Klamath Falls man who was operating heavy equipment as crews worked to slow the wildfire east of Chiloquin. The Klamath County Sheriff’s Office identified the man as 47-year-old...
The Oregon State Fair Returns This Month With 11 Days of Rides, Concerts and Deep-Fried Everything
There’s a point every August when Oregon starts trying to squeeze every last drop out of summer. The evenings get a little shorter, school supplies start appearing everywhere, and then the Oregon State Fair rolls into Salem with glowing carnival rides, packed...
Cleaner Air Is Coming to Western Oregon Tonight, but Wildfire Smoke Could Worsen Farther East
After several days of staring through a brown haze, people across western Oregon may finally be able to open a window and see the hills again. Wildfire smoke that settled over Portland, Salem, Eugene and much of the Willamette Valley is expected to begin thinning...
Highway 26 Remains Closed Between Prineville and Mitchell as Massive Oregon Wildfire Burns Nearby
One of Central Oregon’s most important east-west highways remains shut down as firefighters continue working along the sprawling Rowe Creek Complex. As of Thursday, August 6, U.S. Highway 26 was still closed between Prineville and Mitchell. Oregon Department of...
One of America’s Most Legendary Rodeos Returns to Oregon This September
There are a lot of great events in Oregon every year, but only a handful feel like they belong to the state’s identity. The Pendleton Round-Up is one of them. For more than a century, this iconic Eastern Oregon event has drawn crowds from across the Northwest and far...
National Media Claims Timberline Lodge Is “At Risk of Burning Down,” but the Facts Say Otherwise
Wildfires are serious. Evacuation notices are serious. And when fire officials tell Oregonians to prepare, people should pay attention. But serious situations don’t need to be exaggerated to generate clicks. A national news story published by The Independent on...
Yes, Wildfire Betting Is Really a Thing, and Oregon Senators Want It Stopped
As wildfires force evacuations, destroy homes and send smoke across Oregon and the West, some people are apparently watching the devastation with something other than concern. They’re betting money on it. Online prediction markets have begun offering contracts that...
A Forgotten Newspaper Clipping Reveals Oregon’s Wildfire Debate Was Already Raging More Than 120 Years Ago
Smoke had drifted into Lane County again, turning the sky a sickly-yellow and the surrounding hills into indistinct hazy blue, when I found myself remembering an old newspaper clipping I’d saved during some research into western Oregon history. The clipping came from...
Oregon Republicans Push Constitutional Right to Hunt, Fish and Farm After IP 28 Fails
In a state where fishing boats crowd coastal harbors, hunting camps are a longtime family tradition and farms stretch from the Willamette Valley to the high desert, a new political battle is taking shape over how Oregon protects those ways of life. Republican leaders...
Wildfire Smoke Pushes Portland to Fifth-Worst Air Quality in the World
Portland residents woke up Tuesday to a familiar and unwelcome sign of Oregon’s intense wildfire season: a hazy skyline, muted views of the surrounding hills, and the smell of smoke hanging in the air. By Tuesday afternoon, Portland’s air quality had deteriorated...