Pacific NW/AK/BC Mt. Bachelor

[kimberlin]

Greetings from Arizona! I am new to this site and am hoping some of you may be able to offer advice regarding Mt. Bachelor. This is a potential destination for me this season, so I am curious to know if February or March would be better to ski, and if Off-Mountain lodging is no issue as far as travel time/conditions; or would On-Mtn be the best way to go?

 

[fullStack]

There are no on-mountain options unless you want to bring an RV and camp in the parking lot. However there are a ton of hotel rooms and vacation rentals in Bend or Sunriver, both about 30 minutes away.

The mountain will most likely be 100% open during that time frame. February gives you a better chance of better powder (relative term) and March gives you a slightly better chance of catching days when the summit will be open. (Although we were there for spring break last April and the summit was only open one day, and it was like mid-winter the rest of the week.)

 

[Posaune]

If you're not a raving powder hound, Bachelor is a very good spring option, so you may want to go later than sooner in order to cash in on that. As far as driving from town, the road is not steep, nor is it curvy. It's a nice, easy, and quick drive from town, and as fullStack says, there is nothing in the way of lodging on-mountain and nothing happening there after the lifts quit turning; it's all in Bend. You'll find that the lack of lodging at the ski area is a Cascade Range specialty.

 

[Bill Miles]

If you stay in Bend, I hope you like traffic circles.

 

[kimberlin]

I despise traffic circles. Why are all the nice little towns creating these ridiculous roundabouts? Local gov't must feel that we are not capable of managing our speed or position in 35 mph traffic. They are popping up everywhere. It was in Colorado that I initially learned how to navigate the darn things.. Living my teenage years in Davis, California was bad enough, and that was before they started putting those in on top of all the bike traffic signals, etc.

anyway...off topic. sorry.

Thanks for the shared knowledge about Bachelor as a destination.

 

[New2]

Heh... traffic circles are a bright spot in the too-often-bleak landscape that is today's USA. Traffic circles save lives. And they save money--1) less cost to build than a stoplight; 2) less cost to operate/maintain than a stoplight; 3) lower medical/societal costs because of fewer deaths and decreased injuries. I recommend silently reminding yourself that the life saved could be your own or a loved one's each time you go through a traffic circle--helps make the unfamiliar more comfortable.

Bachelor was awesome when I went in late May this year, and I highly recommend it. The later in the spring you schedule a trip, the more likely you are to get beautiful bluebird weather and the less likely you are to get powder.

 

[kimberlin]

Heh... traffic circles are a bright spot in the too-often-bleak landscape that is today's USA. Traffic circles save lives. And they save money--1) less cost to build than a stoplight; 2) less cost to operate/maintain than a stoplight; 3) lower medical/societal costs because of fewer deaths and decreased injuries. I recommend silently reminding yourself that the life saved could be your own or a loved one's each time you go through a traffic circle--helps make the unfamiliar more comfortable..

[/QUOTE]



Yes, you absolutely correct. But I still find them annoying when they are spaced not even a mile apart from the previous one.

As for Bachelor, I am not a powder seeker , however my husband IS. I will continue to think about Spring vs earlier in the season.

 

[David Chaus]

Thing is, Bachelor does get a lot of snow, and it's on the crest of the Cascades (drier than on the west side of the range) and higher elevation than most PNW areas, so the the snow is usually pretty good. Since there's so much terrain from the summit (when it opens) you can find fresh lines pretty easily.

It takes 30 minutes from downtown Bend to the main lodge, and as has been mentioned, it is a pretty easy drive. And....in Bend you will find beer. Good beer. Connoisseur beer.

 

[John Webb]

If you stay in Bend, I hope you like traffic circles.

They didn't have enough circles last year -I saw more last week !

The freeway thru the middle of town is the strangest one anywhere. It is a parkway with a 35mph speed limit. On and off ramps defy logic
and can't be located easily unless you are a local or have been there for 2 weeks or more. Ski area is quite good for all but a bit limited for experts.

I'll second Daves comment of good beer. More microbreweries per capita than any place on the planet.

See my sig for one. ! 10 barrel sadly got bought up by the Anheiser Bush/Inbev deathstar.

 

[Jim Kenney]

There is a lot of good skiing between Arizona and Oregon. Do you have additional motives for heading that way? I think the thing that makes Mt. Bachelor special is being able to ski 360 degs off the top of a dormant volcano. Lift access to the summit is subject to closure at times due to weather, but on a pretty day it's an extraordinary experience.