Tumalo Mountain

BOU AVENUE
Tumalo Mountain

Zosia Zgolak and I had intentions of climbing Mount Bachelor near Bend, Oregon on 20 April 2019, but because of poor visibility, the designated uphill route at the volcano's ski resort was closed above Pine Marten Lodge on this day. With the promise of partly sunny weather later in the day, we skinned up to the lodge anyway (it took us a little over an hour) in hopes that the skies would clear enough for the resort to open up the upper mountain. Despite some brief flashes of sunshine, the expected clearing never materialized, and after waiting inside the lodge for nearly three hours, Zosia and I decided to cut bait and ski back down to the resort's base area. Fortunately, we still had enough daylight for a Plan B--Tumalo Mountain which is the baby brother of Mount Bachelor and sits just to the northeast across the highway. The western slopes of this shield volcano are fairly gentle and present no serious difficulties for skiers and snowshoers in winter conditions.

	Sonny arrives at the doorsteps of Pine Marten Lodge on Mount Bachelor. The upper part of the volcano is off-limits when visibility is poor. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Zosia peels a Polish Easter egg inside Pine Marten Lodge while trying to wait for the weather to clear.

We should have skied this first thing in the morning!

Here is a view to the northeast of Tumalo Mountain from the slopes of Mount Bachelor.

Upon our return to the base area of the ski resort, we packed up our gear and drove the short distance to Dutchman Flat Sno-Park, the trailhead for Tumalo Mountain (about 4.8 kilometers west of the junction of Highway 372 and FS Road 45; Sno-Park permit required between 1 November and 30 April). Because this trailhead is heavily used by skiers, snowshoers and snowmobilers, parking may be limited. We were lucky to get a parking spot just as someone was leaving, but even late in the afternoon, there were still people arriving here.

At first, we had some trouble figuring out where to head uphill from the trailhead, but in the end, it did not really matter as the terrain is open enough to ascend anywhere. There were also plenty of old tracks to follow, and we simply picked one that looked well-traveled. The ascent was very straightforward as we essentially made a beeline for the summit through the sparse forest. Disappointingly, cloud cover obscured any far-reaching views from the top, and the only consolation was knowing that we did not waste any extra energy climbing to the top of Mount Bachelor in similar conditions.

Much easier than the designated uphill route at Mount Bachelor Ski Resort! Zosia climbs the gentle west slopes of Tumalo Mountain.

Yep, that cloud cover is still persisting on the upper mountain. Many of the runs of Mount Bachelor Ski Resort can be seen behind Sonny as he climbs up Tumalo Mountain's west slopes.
Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak

It gets a little steeper here but not too much. The trees thin out a bit on the upper mountain.

Oh well, better to have cloud cover here than at the summit of Mount Bachelor, I suppose...
Zosia approaches the summit of Tumalo Mountain under increasing cloud cover.

Another summit with zero views...sigh. Sonny and Zosia stand with a chocolate Easter bunny on the summit of Tumalo Mountain (2367 metres).

The east face of Tumalo Mountain is a popular slope for backcountry skiers, but for various reasons--no views, marginal snow quality, and the necessity to skin back up--we opted to return the way we came up. The spring snow was wet and sticky which made the ski descent a little bit challenging. Zosia and I both agreed that, with mid-winter snow conditions, the west slopes would be a really awesome place to ski, but on this day, we resorted more to slushy snow plowing to get down the mountain. In any case, we made quick work of the descent and were back at the trailhead seemingly in no time.

We subsequently returned to the ski resort to grab a hot shower and have dinner before retiring for the night at a nearby camping spot. Our hope was that the weather would clear overnight to give us another shot at Mount Bachelor the next day.

Great fun, no? Some of the trees on the upper mountain are tricky to dodge while skiing.

Should have just brought a toboggan! Sonny plows through slushy snow on the lower slopes.
Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak

Watch out for snowmobiles around here! Zosia arrives back at Dutchman Flat Sno-Park.

Might be worth coming back on a clear winter day with better snow conditions. Total Distance: 4.5 kilometres
Round-Trip Time: 2 hours 10 minutes
Net Elevation Gain: 437 metres
GPX Data

	Zosia climbs the gentle west slopes of Tumalo Mountain.
	Many of the runs of Mount Bachelor Ski Resort can be seen behind Sonny as he climbs up Tumalo Mountain's west slopes. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	The trees thin out a bit on the upper mountain.
	Zosia approaches the summit of Tumalo Mountain under increasing cloud cover.
	Sonny and Zosia stand with a chocolate Easter bunny on the summit of Tumalo Mountain (2367 metres).

	Some of the trees on the upper mountain are tricky to dodge while skiing.
	Sonny plows through slushy snow on the lower slopes. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Zosia arrives back at Dutchman Flat Sno-Park.
	Total Distance: 4.5 kilometres Round-Trip Time: 2 hours 10 minutes Net Elevation Gain: 437 metres GPX Data