DESCHUTES COUNTY, Ore. — When you think of Mt. Bachelor, its winter wonders probably come to mind. But let me tell you, don’t ignore its summer splendor!
“It's one of the few things I've found that makes you feel like a kid again,” said Bend resident Jaclyn Walles.
From scenic chairlift rides to sunset dinners at the mountain’s Pine Marten Lodge to zip line tours, there’s no shortage of things to do when the snow melts.
Walles is on the mountain for a special "Bachelor-ette" party, if you will. A few dozen women meet up every two weeks in the summer to hit the mountain bike trails.
“We have a lot of different options based on your rider comfortability and skill level,” she said. “It's called 'Women of the Dirt,' and essentially, we just get a bunch of rad ladies together. We go up, we split off into groups based on comfortability level, and then we'll go to the trail.”
A brand-new evening event at Mt. Bachelor, Women of the Dirt is open to females ages 13 and above. Each night, the resort closes one mountain bike trail to the public in order to give these ladies exclusive access — on this night it was Lava Flow. Female riders of all abilities are welcome. It’s a great opportunity to gain skills and confidence while riding at your own pace.
“The goal is to bring more riders up here to Mt. Bachelor, introduce them to downhill mountain biking and give them a space so they can meet other like-minded ladies too to have fun and push themselves a little bit more,” said Mt. Bachelor’s senior events and partnerships manager Kristen Costa.
“You don't have to be someone that rides downhill mountain bikes every day. You could try it for the first time, like I did this summer, and fall in love with it,” Costa said.
For Women of the Dirt participants, lift tickets are twenty dollars. Load your bike onto special chairlifts and up you go. You also get discounts on things like demo rentals & gear, and access to the skills park near the base of the trail system.
As one of the group’s leaders, Walles hopes female mountain bikers consider taking the leap to get out of your comfort zone. There are only a few more Women of the Dirt events this summer culminating with a two-day camp on September 14 & 15.
“Finding mountain biking has been the best discovery of my life,” she said. “I love it so much, and it's done so much for me, personally, friendship-wise, mentally, physically, all of the things … I'm thinking about how can I have the most fun, but also get better myself. I try to compete against myself and not others. And so how can I do this better than the last time?”
You can find more information on Mt. Bachelor's Women of the Dirt events here.
"Let's Get Out There" airs once a week on KGW's 4 p.m. newscast and "The Good Stuff," which airs Monday-Thursday at 7 p.m. We're including viewer photos for this series. You can text your photos to 503-226-5088 or post them on the KGW Facebook page.