MSN: Bend one of ’20 Best Mountain Towns in America’

Bend is on yet another “best of” list, showing up 15th on a list of “The 20 Best Mountain Towns in America”: posted late last week by msn.com.

The slideshow — possibly ranked, though no methodlogy is given — is credited to home improvement TV host Bob Vila, best known for his role in “This Old House” for many years on PBS, as well as other programs.

“Take a scenic sojourn to this unassuming getaway, and you’ll catch a glimpse of much more than the Cascade Mountains,” reads the Bend entry, below a stock photo of Bend and the mountain skyline, as seen from the summit of Pilot Butte.

“Peaks, desert and forest all converge in Bend to create a rare landscape of diverse natural elements,” it continues. “That geographic distinction makes the Central Oregon town as fit for rock climbing and paragliding as it is for hiking and rafting.”

No. 1 on the list is Ouray,Colorado, which “is home to around 1,000 residents and a sizable population of tourists,” according to the listing, and is located in “a scenic setting in the San Juan Mountains, which has earned the town its nickname, ‘Switzerland of America.'”

Park City, Utah is No. 2 on this list, followed by Gatlinburg, Tennessee, Stowe, Vermont, and Crested Butte, Colorado.