A zip line rider soars through the sky above Mt. Bachelor Ski Area on Thursday West of Bend. The mountain’s summer activities, including zip line tours, downhill bike park, and sunset dinners, started for the season on Thursday. 06/26/25 (Joe Kline/The Bulletin)

Zipliners, bikers and hikers help double mountain’s summer traffic since 2018, Visit Bend says

The conical high-elevation slopes of Mt. Bachelor are still draped in snow, signs of a healthy winter that left skiers, surfers and farmers happy.

But the chance to float on that falling, frozen substance is no longer what’s drawing crowds to the base of the 9,000-foot-high volcano.

Thursday was the first day visitors could enjoy the mountain’s summer activities — mountain biking, zip lining, chairlift riding, disc golfing, dining and camping — that have grown in popularity in recent years.

The summer season comes on the heels of a snowy winter, with Mt. Bachelor touting the deepest snow base depth in the country in December. The base depth when the ski area closed May 26 was 60 inches, about 10 inches more than the previous year.

There was even a dusting of new snow just a day after the summer solstice.

“We had a really good snow year, but there’s this misconception that there’s still a ton of snow on the mountain based on the average, but in reality it’s pretty standard for this time of year,” said spokesman Presley Quon.

The mountain is also fresh off of a winter shrouded in uncertainty, hope and speculation over the future owner of the beloved ski hill, ending in an April announcement that the mountain was no longer up for sale. 

With ownership indefinitely in the hands of Powdr Corp., a corporate ski hill conglomerate, the focus has shifted to future improvements, including boosting power supply to help with lift capacity and performance. Winter is still the mountain’s bread and butter, Quon said. There aren’t any immediate plans to add more summer activities.

But that may not be necessary, at least for the time being. The mountain has established itself as a solid summer destination, according to Nate Wyeth, senior vice president of strategy at Visit Bend, the city’s tourism agency.

According to Visit Bend, Mt. Bachelor’s summer visitation more than doubled from 2018 to 2024, from about 82,000 to 171,000 visits. The agency estimates that about one-third of people who visit Bend go to Mt. Bachelor, including both summer and winter seasons. It’s part of why the agency awarded $245,000 in lodging taxes in 2022 to help the mountain expand its summer trail system.

“Not everyone is a skier or a snowboarder or even likes winter, so having an approachable way to experience the high Cascades in summer can open up a big door to understanding what Bend and the outdoors are all about,” Wyeth said. “You can head up there, get your mind blown, and go, oh, now I get it. That’s huge.”

A different type of riding

The mountain scales back its operations in the summer season, from 1,000 staff to 200 to 300.

“It’s definitely a different vibe up here,” Quon said. “It feels just a little bit more laid back.”

Adventurers can visit Mt. Bachelor to avoid some of the restrictions on recreation in the nearby Deschutes National Forest, which implemented a permit system to limit crowds on its most popular wilderness hiking trails. New this year, Mt. Bachelor will allow pedal-assist ebikes, which are not allowed on many trails in the national forest.

The resort is running two lifts: Pine Marten, with service about halfway up the mountain, and Little Pine, a shorter lift to easier terrain. Some people take the chair up and back down again simply to soak in scenic views of Broken Top and the Three Sisters. Mountain bikers — with bikes fastened to racks — take the chair up and ride the bike down.

An adult summer lift ticket costs $79 when purchased at the resort and $69 online. An adult season pass costs $389 starting July 1, or cheaper until then.

The chairlift is a big perk for riders who want to maximize vertical descents without using time and effort on riding uphill.

“I prefer not pedaling,” said Travis Spiegel, a 42-year-old mountain biker who recently moved to Bend from Lake Tahoe.

Some of Central Oregon’s most popular mountain biking areas, such as Phil’s Trail west of Bend, function more as cross-country cruises than true alpine descents. In a region where biking opportunities are plentiful, Mt. Bachelor offers something different, sai

d Ian Brown, a mechanic at Bend bike shop Project Bike.

“It’s much less going for a cruise,” said Brown, who grew up mountain biking in Bend. “The trails are pretty gnarly. You go there to lock in.”

Even so, beginners shouldn’t shy away, Mt. Bachelor says. The mountain advertises its “bike park” as “13 miles of downhill trails for all ability levels — from novice riders to expert dirt jumpers.”

High-flying fun

Biking trails were the main attraction when Mt. Bachelor first opened during the summer season in 2013. In 2020, the mountain added a second adrenaline pumping endeavor — ziplining. Thrill seekers can plunge 1,400 feet strapped to a cable running along the volcano’s surface, ending near the West Village lodge. Mt. Bachelor advertises the zipline as the northwest’s steepest, fastest and highest elevation zipline.

“The idea of going down the side of a mountain on a zipline really did it for me,” said Emily Murdock after completing the zipline. Murdock traveled from Eugene to Mt. Bachelor as part of her birthday celebration. “I’d definitely recommend it.”

Jane Highton prepared to board the zipline Thursday, the day after she did a whitewater rafting trip on the Deschutes River. Her family was on vacation from Central California.

“It feels like the air is way cleaner (here),” Highton said.

For some, simply watching the activities is entertaining enough. Greg and Tracy Kurath, a Bend couple in their 70s, sat on the lodge patio listening to a string band, watching the zipliners whiz by and chatting with young mountain bikers.

“It’s wonderful with the music,” said Greg Kurath, who worked as a Mt. Bachelor host about 20 years ago. “All the people are having fun, they’re laughing.”