Seek Out the Outdoors

Central Oregon is one of those “too many carrots, not enough time” great places to live or visit.

Year round recreational pursuits such as mountain biking, hiking, golfing and fly fishing, flavored with more than 300 days of sunshine, offer endless opportunities to get outside. And when the weather turns wintry, the locals don’t drop these activities completely, but add others to the list.

“Central Oregon offers nearly as many options for winter recreation as summer recreation, and we are privileged to be an outdoor enthusiast’s paradise year round,” said Alana Hughson, CEO of Central Oregon Visitors Association.

Skiing and snowboarding at Mt. Bachelor, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, sledding, Nordic skiing and ice skating might be some winter activities that first come to mind, but there are other unique activities that will help get you outdoors and having fun.

So where to start?

I’m a snowshoer, Nordic skier and occasional tele-skier at Mt. Bachelor, and last year I started up with snowshoe running. But there’s one outing I really enjoy and that’s snowshoeing at night, either illuminated by a full moon or beneath a night sky so crystal clear that the stars dazzle the eyes. Swampy Sno-Park’s snowshoe trails have reflective snowshoer icons that mark the trail, making it easy to follow at night.

Wanderlust Tours offers a Moonlight & Starlight snowshoe tour (dependsing upon the phase of the moon).

“We ask folks to channel John Wayne walking into a saloon,” said James Jaggard, general manager of Wanderlust Tours. The image helps new ‘shoers pick up how to snowshoe, while experienced naturalists tell tales of the star-studded constellations or identify night sounds of owls or other wildlife.

Another Cascades outing that is on my Santa wish list is the hut-to-hut traverse thanks to Three Sisters Backcountry Inc. The 22-mile hut-to-hut Nordic traverse goes from Dutchman Flat to the Upper Three Creek Sno-Park, and mostly follows the summer horse riding Metolius-Windigo trail.

“The idea with the hut traverse is that skiers can carry a light pack,” said co-owner Shane Fox, “and explore the terrain that ranges from intermediate to advanced along the traverse.”

Hauled into the backcountry this fall, these new huts come stocked with a food pantry, sleeping bags, full kitchens and local beers. Skiers just need to bring a pack with extra clothing, sleeping bag liner and some fresh food to supplement it all.

A unique winter activity that is gaining in popularity is fat-tire winter biking. Thanks to the Iditabike — the bike racer’s version of the Alaskan sled dog race, the Iditarod — fat tires have expanded cycling to year-round. Designed for travel on snow, sand or soft roads, the bikes’ wide-width tires and rugged frames open up opportunities to cycle snowy trails.

“When the snow biking is good, generally the skiing isn’t good,” said David Marchi, owner of Crow’s Feet Commons.

Though I’m not much of a cyclist, I can appreciate the light-weight frames and rugged suspension that allow bikers to ride where snow angels tread.

Instead of pedal power, I’d rather harness the energy of dogs to take me down a snowy trail. After watching the Atta Boy 300 sled dog races at Wanoga Sno-Park one winter, I decided to take a sled dog ride at Mt. Bachelor’s Sunrise Lodge. Owned and operated by Jerry Scdoris and his daughter, Rachel, a 2009 Iditarod finisher, they and their team of mushers run the Oregon Trail of Dreams at the ski area.

You don’t need directions from the lodge to find the staging area. Just follow the sounds of exuberant dogs yipping and barking. With a “Let’s Go!” command, the dogs settle down to a steady pace and the sled shushes over the snow. The dogs are highly trained athletes, which the Scdorises treat like family. And if you’re looking for a few good stories, spend a few minutes chatting with Jerry Scdoris about the dogs, racing and the Iditarod.

After the excitement of dashing through the snow on a sled pulled by dogs, a horse-drawn carriage ride through the Old Mill District is a nice compliment. There is something very romantic and soothing about the rhythmic jingle of sleigh bells and the clip-clop of hooves on pavement. Straight out of a Courier and Ives lithograph from the 1800s, these rides offered by Cowboy Carriage are a fun way to get into the Christmas spirit. And speaking of carrots, don’t forget a “tip” for Kurt and Roman, the hardest working percheron horses in the business.

“There is a growing trend for people wanting to give experiences as holiday gifts,” said Tawna Fenske, Communications & PR Manager for Visit Bend. “A lot of these activities are those bucket list or once-in-a-lifetime experiences that folks can’t get in a lot of other places.”

Too many carrots, perhaps, but that is what Central Oregon is all about.