Smoke, heat shape how people are spending summer in Central Oregon

BEND, Ore. — From checking air quality before heading outside to changing vacation destinations overnight, wildfire smoke is factoring into summer plans for people across the Northwest.

For Kevin Piro, visiting Bend from Lake Oswego with his two young children, checking air quality has become part of his daily routine.

“I’m checking the air quality pretty much every day,” Piro said. “I got two young kids, so I’m always trying to be thoughtful about what I’m exposing them to.”

For another family visiting Central Oregon, smoke led to a change of destination.

Kenny Evans and his family, visiting from Longview, Washington, had planned to head to Lake Chelan before encountering smoky conditions.

“We were about to head to Lake Chelan, but it was so smoky,” Evans said. “We did a quick pivot overnight. We came down here to Bend, and this has been fantastic.”

Evans said smoke has affected other plans for his family as well. During the full interview, he said they canceled a couple of camping trips, including one near the Portland area because conditions from the Grasshopper fires were too smoky.

The change brought the family to Bend, where Evans said smoke had not been an issue during their visit. The family was also preparing to go rafting.

For Bend resident Drake Ember, smoke has not been enough to completely deter him from getting outside.

“I won’t necessarily try to spend time outside, but it also doesn’t deter me,” Ember said.

The conversations highlight the different ways people are responding to wildfire smoke — from monitoring air quality with young children to changing travel destinations when conditions worsen.

For those enjoying Bend, changing conditions may mean adjusting plans along the way while still finding opportunities to get outside.