Skiing in Central Oregon

I love skiing at my "home hill" - aka Mt. Hood - but there's something special about taking a ski trip to Central Oregon.  Although Hood will always be my favorite mountain, Mt. Bachelor is a very close second.

Ski buddies at it again!

Central Oregon, and specifically the town of Bend, are located east of the Cascade mountain range, landing smack-dab in it's rain shadow.  Thus the eastern slopes boast lovely dry, powder snow - much better skiing than Hood's heavy, wet "Cascade concrete."

My friend and ski buddy Kim owns a vacation home in the nearby town of Sunriver, and one weekend in late February invited me to join her.  Let's just say she didn't have to ask me twice!

This guy's channeling his inner Evel Knievel

You never know what you're going to see on the slopes of Mt Bachelor, and our first day I spotted a young man in this very patriotic ski suit.  I think he was channeling his inner "Evel Knievel."

Gargantuan lift line!

A small storm had rolled through the prior evening, depositing 4 inches of fluff.  The combination of new snow and it being a Saturday brought the snow-riders out in droves.  The result was a ginormous line at the Pine Martin lift.

The slow lift-line shuffle...

Kim and I joined in the mayhem, and slowly shuffled our way to the front.  It seemed to take forever!

Mountain crater

Snowy, foggy skies obscured much of the scenery, but every once and awhile the clouds would part for a teaser glimpse of the mountain.

Skier's pose

The great thing about the prior night's snow and freezing fog - it produced a lovely white coating over everything.  The trees were especially photogenic.

Views from the summit

Mt Bachelor is known for it's high winds and low visibility.  For those reasons, the Summit Lift is not open much during winter months.  But things started to clear up in the early afternoon.  Kim and I really lucked out - we skied by minutes after the Summit opened, and were some of the first skiers down.

Ride up and do it again

Skiing down from the summit, the views can't be beat.  Tumalo Mountain is front and center.  And all of Central Oregon opens up to the east.  The clearing skies couldn't have come at a better time!  Kim and I marveled at our good fortune.

Frosty trees

But still, fog clung in lower valleys to the north and west, with only the mountain tops rising above.

Mountains peeping above the clouds

One great thing about skiing at Mt Bachelor - on a clear day, the nearby mountain scenery can't be beat!  Even on a party cloudy day, it's not too shabby.

Gettin' high in Central Oregon

As the afternoon wore on, the low valley fog started drifting back across the adjacent hills.
 

Old Skyliner run beckons...

But Kim and I were starting to tire.  Deciding on one last run, we swooshed through the soft fluff of Old Skyliner's twisty trail.

More mountain views

Making a run for the base area  and parking lot, I stopped for a final shot of late afternoon light on the cinder cone.  (Although I've only hiked up there once, I'm bound and determined to ski the cone again!)

The cone in afternoon light

A full day of skiing requires replenishment of carbs.  Lucky for Kim and I, Bend has a plethora of wonderful brewpubs, all boasting great microbrews.  We made a stop at 10 Barrel Brewery for some Sinistor Ale, our fave.

Toasting another great ski day!

Cheers to another great day of skiing at Mt. Bachelor!


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