Perhaps you’d like to enjoy a day of nordic skiing without worrying about slippery roads, tire chains, parking spots, and other drivers. Maybe you’d like to reduce your carbon footprint. Or maybe you don’t have a car. If any of those apply to you, you are in luck! Living in the Portland metro area, there are inexpensive and convenient options for using transit to reach a variety of groomed and ungroomed trails.
Last winter I spent a lot of time skiing on groomed trails at Mount Hood Meadows, Teacup Nordic, and Mount Bachelor without a car. It is also possible to get to Government Camp by bus. Here are some of the transit details, from the closest to the farthest, for these great ski destinations.
Government Camp: The Mt. Hood Express runs from the Sandy Transit Center to Government Camp and Timberline Lodge seven days a week (except Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day). There are seven roundtrips a day. Sandy Area Metro/Sandy Transit (see their Routes and Services) operates a bus between the Gresham Transit Center and the Sandy Transit Center, with a schedule that’s coordinated with the Mt. Hood Express. Trimet has frequent service to the Gresham Transit Center by MAX and bus.
Mount Hood Meadows and Teacup Nordic: I took advantage of two options last winter to get to the Nordic trails at Meadows. Meadows operated a “luxury motorcoach” (it is quite comfortable) holidays, weekends, and some mid-week days from late December through the end of March. There were three pickup spots: Park and Rides in Tualatin, Beaverton, and Portland (Gateway). This ski season, the Park and Ride bus runs from Dec. 17, 2022.
I also used interlinking routes from Columbia Area Transit (CAT) to reach both Meadows and Teacup Nordic. The Columbia Gorge Express runs from Gateway Transit Center in Portland to CAT’s hub in Hood River. The schedule for the Gorge Express dovetailed nicely with the Gorge-to-Mountain Express, serving both Meadows and Teacup. As an added bonus, both buses take the annual Gorge Pass, which works on buses in both Oregon and Washington up and down the Gorge. Currently the cost is $40/year for adults. This ski season, Gorge-to-Mountain Express starts on Dec. 12, 2022.
Mount Bachelor Nordic Center: There are two different buses you can ride from Portland to Bend. The Central Oregon Breeze picks up at Union Station, the airport, and the Cleveland Avenue Max Station in Gresham. They’re currently running four days a week (they’re working to hire more drivers and increase frequency). Shuttle Oregon runs from Union Station to Bend. They are currently operating six days a week.
Once in Bend, the Mt. Bachelor Ski Shuttle operated by Cascades East Transit is quite convenient, with lots of departures starting fairly early in the morning. The main pick-up spot is just across the Deschutes River from Old Town, an easy walk from many lodging options.
There are no doubt, other intriguing ski destinations with workable transit options. If you know of any, please pass them along so we can add them to the list. Use your imagination, enjoy the ride, and have fun!
Submitted by Steve Acker