Central Oregon Snowshoe

My wintertime travels to Central Oregon have been almost exclusively for skiing.  However, from multiple trips between Bend and Mt Bachelor, I've passed several sno-parks and always had the desire to check out their trails.  But with limited weekend time, skiing had always taken precedence over hiking or snowshoeing.  That is, until this year.

Kim and I ready to hit the trail!

My friend Kim and I were trying to schedule another ski trip to Mt Bachelor.  However, this year in an attempt to limit crowds (COVID, you know) Mt Bachelor had instituted a parking reservation system.  When reservations had opened up in November, I'd been lucky enough to grab three weekends.  However, now wishing to ski a fourth weekend, we discovered all the Saturdays and Sundays in March solidly booked.

Off through the forest

What to do?  Noticing that parking spaces were available most weekdays, I asked Kim if she could spare a few vacation days.  When Kim confirmed she could take time off, I scored spots for Monday and Tuesday.  (Which turned out to be so much better than weekend days.  Way less people!)  But driving over on Saturday gave us an entire free day on Sunday.  I suggested to Kim that we check out a snowshoe trail.  Having never snowshoed before, Kim was a bit hesitant.  She didn't want to tire herself out and not be able to ski the next two days.  But when I promised I'd find an easy trail, she was all in.

Cute snowshoe trail marker

From many trips back and forth between Sunriver and Mt Bachelor I'd passed the Edison Sno-park and always wondered what was there.  For this reason it rose to the top of my list, and I searched the internet for information.  The digital highway is a wonderful thing - I quickly found a detailed trail map of the entire area.  It indicated lots of trails, separated for snowshoeing, cross country skiing, and snowmobiling.  And I loved the electrically-themed trail names - High Voltage, AC/DC, Supercharger, Light Bulb Loop.  Despite all the cool names, I picked a trail unimaginatively called the "Short Loop."  But it was three miles total distance, perfect for a beginner.

My brother spies something!

So on a sunny, beautiful Sunday morning Kim and I met my brother at the Edison Sno-park.  My brother brought an extra pair of snowshoes for Kim so she didn't have to rent a pair.  I showed Kim how to put on her snowshoes, consulted the nearby trail map, and posed for a few photos.  Then we were on our way!

Edison Shelter

I wasn't sure what to expect, so I was pleasantly surprised by the wonderful scenery along the Short Loop.  A thin coating of new snow covered everything, and it sparkled in the sun.  Huge ponderosa pines lined our path - their bark a lovely shade of reddish brown.  I was used to the dense forests around Mt Hood, so was appreciative of the large gaps between trees.  Enough to see the beautiful blue sky!  Although there wasn't any huge elevation gains, the path did have a few mellow ups and downs, traversing a bit of snow-covered lava rock.

Snack break at the shelter

Our destination was the Edison Shelter, about 1.5 miles from the parking area.  It was a cute log structure complete with covered porch and wood burning stove inside.  We were lucky and arrived just as another group was leaving, so had the place to ourselves!  (Even more desirable in these times of COVID).  

Heading back

The day's temperatures had warmed enough that there wasn't a need to huddle inside around the stove (and it wasn't burning anything either).  Instead my brother, Kim, and I sat on the porch and enjoyed a snack, while taking in the lovely forest scenery.

Huge ponderosa pines!

Hearing voices on the trail to the shelter was our cue it was time to get going.  So my brother, Kim and I packed up and retraced our steps back to the main "Short Loop" trail.  At the junction, there was a bit of discussion about which trail was the continuance of the loop.  After heading one direction my brother discovered a smiley face I'd earlier traced into a nearby snowbank, which clearly indicated we'd gone the wrong way.  So back to the junction we went, this time taking the correct trail. 

Final junction (and Kim is happy)

The loop continuance was just as wonderful.  More gigantic ponderosa pines and small snowy humps.  By now the temps were warm enough for the snow to stick, and my brother amused us by throwing snowballs up these small hills and watching them roll downhill while increasing in size. (Yes, I'll admit it, I'm easily entertained!)

Snowdrifts over lava rock piles

By the final trail junction, Kim was starting to tire.  She admitted that three miles might have been a bit ambitious for her first snowshoe outing.  But with only 3/4 mile left to go, we slowed down and made our breaks more frequent, so she toughed it out.

The trailhead is in sight!

As we approached the parking lot, our eyes were treated to a glimpse of nearby Mt Bachelor through the trees.  A wonderful surprise - and great way to end our day in the woods.  

Kim was such a trooper.  Although she was later sore from our outing it didn't stop her from skiing the next two days straight.  Kim even said she'd try another snowshoe trek!