Below is excerpts of an article written by Bill Fink for the San Francisco Chronicle featuring Mt. Bachelor Ski Resort and Bend Oregon :


(11-23) 04:00 PST Bend , Ore. -- During the spring I spent the weekend with a nearly 50-year-old bachelor, balding on top, who was hiding out in the wilds of Central Oregon .

A day on the slopes at Mount Bachelor . McMenamins Old St. Francis School, seen here, and Deschutes...Deschutes Brewery is a popular place to gather in Bend .  It seemed like a long way to go, but I heard this old guy is still full of fun. As I bounced through ice and gravel on the final approach, I watched the setting sun reflecting off the bare white peak of my host, the venerable Mount Bachelor.

Founded in 1948 as Bachelor Butte, it is a major-league mountain with only minor-league fame. After a weekend experiencing its celebrated snow, great slopes and the festive nearby town of Bend, I'd have to say this great white uncle deserves more attention.

Standing aloof and apart from the nearby Three Sisters Mountains, Bachelor is a Fuji-like conical volcano with a 9,000-foot summit poking above the tree line. Although located in central Oregon, Mount Bachelor is quite accessible from the Bay Area. A two-hour flight (if you don't mind turboprops) connects San Francisco International Airport to Redmond, Ore., a 20-minute drive from Bend.

It's not your typical ski resort . Upon arrival, I drove from town to check out the Mount Bachelor mountain village and apres-ski scene. I didn't see a single car on the 30-minute drive, which I took as a good sign - everybody must still be up there partying. However, the parking lot was completely empty when I arrived at 5 p.m. Were environmentally conscious locals just taking the bus? No. As I discovered, aside from an early closing patio bar, there is no on-mountain apres scene, no on-mountain lodging, and just one small shop. And that's how skiers here like it - the purist ski setting, without a faux European prefab village pasted on a formerly pristine hill.
Modern offerings

But Mount Bachelor is no backwoods outpost. It has updated rental facilities, ski schools, 10 lifts, more than 70 runs and several elaborate terrain parks. All types of folks visit the mountain, from boarders to families, bunny-hill learners and veterans who recall the good ol' days of tow ropes and plank skis. Mount Bachelor's slopes cover more than 3,600 acres of every variety of ski run, dropping more than 3,300 feet from peak to parking lot.

On my first day of skiing , I enjoyed Chamber of Commerce weather, with blue skies, fresh powder and crisp, windless 30-degree temperatures. On the back side of the mountain, I couldn't see any other skiers, but I could hear their hoots of happiness as they cruised through hidden glades on either side of me.

I sat back on my skis, cruising through the feather-light powder like I was riding a people-mover at the airport, but with a much better view. Mount Bachelor stands in the high desert region of Central Oregon , with the low humidity giving skiers the benefit of lighter fluffy snow.

In a single day, I skied through long groomer runs, hucked myself off some vertigo-inspiring summit cornices and navigated blindly through off-piste terrain, (earning myself a long traverse back to the lift).

Mount Bachelor's lack of fame meant that I never had to wait in a lift line, and had few human obstacles.

This season there will be even more space in which to play: full 360-degree mountain access for skiers and riders, opening up extensive terrain on the back of the mountain, with fall lines that will take you back to the front-side lifts without hiking. The " 'round the world grooming" will offer linked corduroy trails for intermediate skiers on all parts of the mountain.

From the summit, I enjoyed a panoramic vista of the three snow capped Sisters and rolling forest-covered hills topped with jagged gray rock faces. Someone on the ski patrol pointed out the distant peaks of Mount Shasta in California and Mount Adams in Washington. Locals laughed at me as I raved about the conditions. "It's like this every day here," they told me - with a wink.

Sure enough, I woke the next day to near white-out conditions, with the Summit Chair closed due to wind. With some of the heaviest snowfall in the West, Mount Bachelor has its share of stormy days.

On the slopes, the wind whipped ice pellets like sandpaper across my face. I was able to seek out some sheltered slopes with tree coverage blocking out the worst of the wind, giving me the benefit of private slopes, as most sensible people had fled to the lodges for hot chocolate.

After turning into a skiing snowman, I left to warm myself in Bend . Experiencing the town is much like navigating Mount Bachelor - it contains a combination of new additions and carefully planned facilities, but with alternate paths that are decidedly un-groomed. The town itself is like three different versions of a 50-year old bachelor: the down-and-outer, the plastic surgery makeover and the freewheeling eccentric.

Different feels

The "Old Mill" part of town has the feel of the remade, just-divorced-and-bought-a-Corvette bachelor. Old lumber mills have been refurbished into high-end malls with martini bars, clothing boutiques and fancy restaurants, surrounded by million-dollar homes in subdivisions that sprawl like moss over the green hills. Movie theaters and activity shops cater to the bachelor's nieces and nephews, while paved paths along the river remove much of the risk of wandering. It's a pleasant area, but has a plastic feel of a movie set.

Then there's the down-and-out bachelor of Bend living across the tracks on the Third Street corridor of cut-rate motels, mini-malls and fast-food joints. It has the feel of the South Lake Tahoe strip before the recent improvement. On the plus side, the area offers cheaper options for visitors, with rental shops and supermarkets.

The freewheeling eccentric bachelor version of Bend is what draws visitors. The historic downtown contains an eclectic assortment of dive bars, high-end bistros, a theater company, a couple of art galleries, a bar in a former Catholic school, a fancy restaurant with a tree growing in the middle of it - and some women on the streets in fur coats, while others sported leather, tattoos and piercings.

I saw signs on bars and hotels welcoming both spring breakers and environmental scientists, and book stores sporting peace signs, while next door a bartender regaled patrons with the story of the extended street brawl the night before.

The best way to experience downtown Bend is through its microbreweries. Bend is justly famous for its homebrews, sporting at least seven brewpubs and a distillery all within stumbling distance of one another. The competition is fierce between them, with loyal patrons and bartenders telling me of the ill effects of daring to drink the allegedly polluted brew of their competitors.

Friendly locals

At Deschutes Brewery, I gave up on the 40-minute wait for a table to sit at the bar, ordering, appropriately enough, a Bachelor Bitter beer. But I couldn't remain sour for long, as friendly locals and tourists alike pulled me into their conversations about the town, the hill and the lousy beers down the street.

So as Mount Bachelor commemorates its 50th birthday this season, visitors and residents alike will have plenty of opportunities to celebrate the quirky old guy, both on the slopes and around town. While opinion may vary on the merits of traditional versus new, groomed versus making your own tracks, luxury versus budget, the old bachelor is easing very nicely into middle age.

Five cool things about Mount Bachelor and Bend

1. Dec. 19 is Mount Bachelor 's official 50th birthday. Show up for some cake. Festive events are scheduled during the whole season.

2. Bachelor averages more than 370 inches of snow per year, most of it the light, fluffy Rocky Mountain variety. In the 2007-08 season it received 565 inches of snow - more than 47 feet.

3. Bend has seven breweries. Don't like beer? No problem. Visit Bend Distillery for locally produced spirits served in martinis all across town.

4. Skiers' tip: For the best conditions, follow the sun around the mountain. Start with the Sunrise lift on the east side, and travel across the cone of Mount Bachelor with the sun. Finish the day in the long intermediate groomer runs on the west side.

5. New for 2008: 360-degree mountain access - you can traverse the entire circumference of the snow-covered volcano. Newly graded lower slopes enable skiers to return to the front-side lifts. The back side is recommended for advanced skiers only.

If you go

GETTING THERE

United has direct flights from SFO to Redmond for a bit less than $400, taking about two hours. Flights to Portland are a bit cheaper and more plentiful. From Portland, it's a three-hour (very scenic) drive to Bend . From Bend , it's a 20- to 30-minute drive to Mount Bachelor.


Bill Fink last wrote for Travel about Albania. To comment, visit sfgate.com/travel and follow the links.

This article appeared on page E - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle

For vacation rentals or lodging in Bend Oregon call Alpenglow Vacation Rentals at 541-385-7100 or go to their website at:

http://www.AlpenglowVacationRentals.com