It makes me sad to say it, but summer is winding down in Bend.

Luckily, we still have plenty of great weather and copious opportunities to seize summer by its peppy little scruff and give it a fierce, friendly shake. Here are a few of my favorite ways to squeeze the last drops of summer out of your Bend experience.

Splash around

Blogger Tawna hits the river for an early evening SUP.

Water recreation is such a big deal in Bend that we have a whole page devoted to it on the Visit Bend website. From canoeing to standup paddleboarding to floating the river, there’s no better way to soak up the best things Bend has to offer.

If whitewater rafting is on your bucket list, now’s the time to call Sun Country Tours and get that Big Eddy trip booked before the weather turns chilly and getting splashed becomes decidedly less fun. Though Wanderlust Tours offers their fabulous Moonlight and Starlight Canoe trips into the fall months, August and September are great months to go if you prefer not to don gloves before taking your paddle in-hand.

Standup paddleboarding (or SUP for folks cooler than me) is my water recreation of choice, and I feel twitchy when the days start getting shorter. Luckily, the hour just before sunset is my favorite time to be out on the Deschutes River, since that’s when fish are jumping and beavers are cruising around looking for dinner salad. If you don’t have your own gear and the SUP rental shop of your choice closes at 5 p.m., opt for a full-day rental that lets you keep the board overnight. No roof rack? (Or no desire to haul a board around town)? Tumalo Creek Kayak and Canoe offers a variety of SUP social nights in the evening hours, and $25 gets you a board rental and a two-hour guided tour guaranteed to let you make the most of the dwindling warm summer evenings.

Sip summer beers on the Bend Ale Trail

While winter always feels like the season for malty porters and beefy stouts, summertime seems perfect for lighter brews. Now’s a great time to head out on the Bend Ale Trail to sample some of these made-in-Bend beers that just wouldn’t taste the same if you sipped them in mid-December.

Nothing’s better than a can of Sweet As while kicking back on Elk Lake.

At Worthy Brewing, the Easy Day Kolsch is a light, crisp brew that goes down easy when the weather’s warm. Though it’s gone for the season now, plan ahead next summer to get your hands on Gary’s No Quit Wit, a seasonal Belgian-style wheat ale spiced with coriander and orange peel for a unique, fruity flavor that’s perfect for summer. For bonus points, be sure to enjoy your Worthy brew on their awesome outdoor patio.

Deschutes Brewery’s delicious Fresh Squeezed IPA and River Ale are two of my longtime favorite summer brews, even though both are now bottled and offered year-round. For a sip of something you can only get this time of year, grab a Twilight Summer Ale and enjoy a crisp, malty brew with a heady dose of Amarillo hops.

My go-to brew to throw in the cooler for a summertime trip to the lake is GoodLife Brewing’s tasty Sweet As. It won the People’s Choice Award at the 2012 Bend Brewfest, and it’s light, refreshing, and perfectly portable in a handy can.

One of my favorite summer brews of all is Off Leash from Crux Fermentation Project. Admittedly I’m partial to it because my talented fiancé is the guy who came up with the name, and it’s the beer we’ll be serving at our upcoming wedding. But aside from all that, it’s really freakin’ delicious. A session IPA, Off Leash has a sort of floral, hoppy taste with just the faintest hint of grapefruit. Perfectly refreshing on a hot day!

Hike it before the snow flies

One of the best things about Bend is that it’s a great destination for hiking no matter what time of year you visit. But there are some hiking hot spots that really shine when it comes to summertime hiking, so now’s the time to lace up your boots and go.

The wildflowers are in full bloom now for the Cone & Iron Mountain hike.

Tumalo Falls can be tricky to navigate when there’s snow on the ground, which makes summertime and early fall a great time to go. You can hoof it for miles without the risk of post-holing up to your crotch (something I’ve done more than once when hiking there in late-spring).

Late summer is also when a lot of the wildflowers are in full-bloom at the upper elevations, so this is a great time to head to the high Cascade Lakes or out to the Mount Jefferson Wilderness area. The Cone and Iron Mountain Hike spotlighted on the Cascade Hiking Adventures page is another great option for wildflower viewing.

Speaking of the Cascade Lakes, this time of year is particularly great for heading up there to enjoy some snow-free hiking. Visit Bend’s marketing director took my dog up to Green Lakes Trail last weekend and declared it one of the best hikes he’s ever done around Bend (instantly making me envious of my own dog). The area is brimming with waterfalls, amazing lava-scapes, and a creek that runs alongside it for most of the hike. You can read more about that hike (along with a dozen or so others) on Visit Bend’s hiking page.

Dine al fresco

This is the time of year when outdoor dining is at its best in Bend, so don’t miss the opportunity to nab a spot on one of Bend’s sunny patios.

900 Wall is one of many fabulous Bend hotspots offering outdoor dining.

If you want views of the Deschutes River, Crossings at The Riverhouse has a scenic and spacious deck that’s the perfect place to lift a fork or a glass. If you’d prefer to dine along a stretch of river dotted with happy kayakers and river floaters, nab a table at Greg’s Grill or Anthony’s in the Old Mill District. One of Bend’s oldest restaurants, the Pine Tavern, has a breathtaking riverfront patio in Downtown Bend, and the only thing better than the views is a basket of their famous sourdough scones.

Prefer to set out on your own? Check out this blog post on planning the perfect picnic in Bend!

It’s a great time to shop

Shopping in Downtown Bend is terrific this time of year.

Stores are busy trotting out fall sweaters and back-to-school fashions, so it’s easy to overlook the fact that we’ve still got a couple more months of short-sleeve weather in Bend. Not only that, but a lot of retailers are offering killer deals on summer fashions you’ll be able to wear again next year when the weather turns warm.

Cruise through Downtown Bend and nab deals on designer duds from Hot Box Betty, or pick up a snazzy new bag from Clutch: A Handbag Boutique in the Tres Jolie marketplace. I’m obsessed with the outdoor clearance racks at downtown consignment shops Rescue Moderne Consignment , so if you end up there, please save some cute summer skirts and dresses for me.

If you’re in the Old Mill District, you’ll find oodles of great summer clearance racks right now at big-box retailers like Gap and Banana Republic. You can also scope out the deals from local favorites like Bend-based jewelry designer Nashelle or Vanilla Urban Threads.

Mt. Bachelor’s got more than just skiing

Plenty of folks know Mt. Bachelor as a snow lover’s paradise in the wintertime, but did you know they’ve got a great roundup of summer activities, too? Their downhill mountain bike park offers a great way to shred the slopes in a totally different way than you would on your snowboard.

Get along, little doggies!

Oregon Trail of Dreams does summertime sled dog rides with Iditarod musher Racheal Scodoris and her dad, Jerry. The pups pull a wheeled cart that cruises along at surprising speeds while the doggies yap their excitement. Stick around afterward to help feed and water the dogs.

If you’d rather skip the recreation and go straight to dinner, book a reservation to ride the chairlift and enjoy a scenic, sunset meal at 7,775-feet. You get unparalleled mountain views, and bragging rights for one of the most unique dining experiences in Central Oregon. The opportunity ends for the season on August 31, so book fast (and don’t forget to pack a sweater—it gets chilly up there!)