Mt. Bachelor, OR, Report: Soft Snow and Incredible Trees

snowboarder in the air with trees in the background at mt. bachelor — Ample booters at Bachelor with soft landings! | Photo: Mike Frohmader

Report from Sunday February 18, 2024

Mt. Bachelor, Oregon sits just 22 miles outside of Bend, OR at an elevation of 5,700 feet. The ski area is among the snowiest in Oregon, receiving upwards of 400 inches every year. This deep snowpack is serviced by 12 chairlifts and boasts more than 4,300 acres of skiable terrain.

Growing up in Portland, OR, and never having skied at Mt. Bachelor before, I jumped at the chance to ski with my cousin and his friends. The best part: we were meeting up for a bachelor party at Mt. Bachelor. President’s Day weekend is typically associated with heavy traffic, long lift lines, and crowded ski runs. Mt. Bachelor surprised us with practically no lift lines to speak of all weekend long. A wide variety of terrain helped spread people out all over the mountain, meaning we frequently found ourselves with a glade to ourselves or a wide open run with no one in sight.

skier launching a wind lip, stoke is high — Endless fun in the trees. | Photo: Mike Frohmader

Just before we arrived, Mt. Bachelor stacked up 15 inches of snow, with very little break in snowfall for the rest of the trip. Each morning we found a few more inches of free refills on our cars, keeping everything around the resort nice and soft.

Skiing above the clouds. | Photo: Mike Frohmader

While the fog was a little thick at times, with only one brief glimpse of the Three Sisters the whole weekend, we hardly knew what we were missing higher on the mountain with endless laps through soft snow in the trees.