Affordable ski towns

[NWSkiGirl]

I can't remember if Bend, OR has been mentioned. It's certainly growing by leaps and bounds. Seems like a friendly place. Bachelor is a 20-30 min drive for for everyone since there is no lodging anywhere near the mountain given the lack of private land.

Recently spent a few hours in Bend driving between Portland and Eagle Point. Ate at an indoor/outdoor "food court" that was a small collection of parked food trucks call the Podski. The pierogis were wonderful! It's across the street from the Box Factory. The Box Factory was brand new when I was in Bend in May 2018. Now there is a large multi-use development being built right next to it. I heard a man talking to a friend about how the real estate market was shifting quickly. He seemed to be a buy's agent. The two came in on bikes, each with a big dog.

Podski in Bend, September 2023
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Box Factory
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Thanks for the info on Bend! I stayed there and skied at Bachelor for three days a while back. But I got altitude sickness and spent the entire time in my hotel room once I was done skiing for the day. So I didn't see Bend!

 

[NWSkiGirl]

Some years AZ Snow bowl doesn't open, or only opens for a few days. Andwhen it does, it is a complete sh*tshow as everyone comes up from Phoenix on the weekend. Flagstaff also has real water issues, like a real fear they are going to run out. Something to look into. My son, an avid skier, was there for school and now lives in Phoenix. He buys a season pass at Telleuride and skips SnowBowl most of the time.

I can't live near a resort that doesn't open for the season! That would be so disappointing...

 

[marzNC]

Thanks for the info on Bend! I stayed there and skied at Bachelor for three days a while back. But I got altitude sickness and spent the entire time in my hotel room once I was done skiing for the day. So I didn't see Bend!

Hmm, if you have been sensitive to higher altitude (over 8000 ft) then anywhere in the Colorado mountains might not be such a good idea just from the standpoint of altitude. One reason I didn't have much interest in checking out resorts in Colorado when I wasn't skiing that often (not every year, 4-5 days per trip) was the higher altitude compared to other places like Tahoe or SLC.

Bend is around 3600 ft. The base of Mt. Bachelor is almost 6000 ft. In comparison, the town of Steamboat Springs is almost 7000 ft. SLC is around 4500 ft.

 

[contesstant]

Bend is on my bucket list of places to retire to. I would drive through there while in college, heading from CA to ID and every time, and I was just smitten with the place. For me, access to fantastic mountain biking is almost higher on the list than fantastic skiing. But I don't find overcrowded slopes, no matter how good the mountain or terrain, to be fantastic skiing, so I'd be pretty content having access to a no-name ski hill that isn't crowded.

 

[badger]

Some years AZ Snow bowl doesn't open, or only opens for a few days. Andwhen it does, it is a complete sh*tshow as everyone comes up from Phoenix on the weekend. Flagstaff also has real water issues, like a real fear they are going to run out. Something to look into. My son, an avid skier, was there for school and now lives in Phoenix. He buys a season pass at Telleuride and skips SnowBowl most of the time.

I have lived here for over twenty years. Never have I seen Snowbowl not open. It is the other resort Sunrise that has problems.
What is the water situation in Flagstaff Arizona?


Flagstaff's Designation of Adequate Water Supply

The Adequate Water Supply Designation signifies that Flagstaff has demonstrated physical supply availability for 100 years, legal rights to water, water infrastructure, as well as financial and water treatment capabilities

 

[marzNC]

My old friend who lives in southern Oregon heads to Mt. Bachelor for weekend skiing every so often. His home mountain is Mt. Ashland (near Medford) but he and his wife also have Ikon. Their grandkids have been learning to ski at Ashland (non-profit).

From what I understand, Bachelor never gets crowded like Ikon resorts that have lodging close to the base (less than 10 min drive) and/or a larger local population . Probably because the nearest large airport is either Medford or Portland, 3-4 hours drive away. I've only skied Bachelor in early May. Would like to ski Ashland and Bachelor during mid-season at some point.

 

[badger]

Here's an idea: When my husband I were asked to relocate from Northern California to the Southwest, I decided to randomly call businesses and organizations in the cities I was interested in checking out. This was before the Internet was as useful as it is now. I really appreciated the conversations with locals who truly knew the area. The information was so great that I was able to make the right choices.

 

[geargrrl]

I have lived here for over twenty years. Never have I seen Snowbowl not open. It is the other resort Sunrise that has problems.
What is the water situation in Flagstaff Arizona?


Flagstaff's Designation of Adequate Water Supply

The Adequate Water Supply Designation signifies that Flagstaff has demonstrated physical supply availability for 100 years, legal rights to water, water infrastructure, as well as financial and water treatment capabilities

There was one year while my son was at NAU that it did not open....(according to him)I would have to look it up.
If you live there, I guess you would know more than others but when we were visiting our friends they had us look up the well logs for their property as they are very concerned about sustainablity of them. My hub is a hydrogeologist.
If you live there you would know and I stand corrected.

I suppose we should comment only on areas that we KNOW like me as a 30 year resident of eastern WA and proximal to N Idaho, or SibHusky in Whitesigh We should each refrain from commenting on areas that looked cool in a magazine article, or we drove through and had lunch in one time. There's a lot of errroneous info out there that we all zoom in on.

 

[Christy]

From what I understand, Bachelor never gets crowded like Ikon resorts that have lodging close to the base (less than 10 min drive) and/or a larger local population .

I think this is subjective, and of course it depends on what the facilities were designed to handle. Locals do complain about crowds (and infrastructure). There's a FB group called Mt. Bachelor Conditions with 17k+ members that was useful to me before I went last year. Anyone interested in getting the inside scoop on Bachelor could join that.

Bend--the town itself/housing developments--also has significant fire risk.

 

[Christy]

I'm just worried about being able to afford to ski now! How did you do it?

I was sure there was a thread about this but I can't find it. Maybe someone else knows where it is?

On my Buy Nothing group and my neighborhood FB group, I regularly see people asking to borrow/swap/obtain for free all sorts of kids (and adult) items for various activities, from sports to Halloween costumes to art supplies.* Someone almost always has the thing that someone else wants. I also have to think there's a whole world of groups, either online or in person (or both) for outdoorsy moms or outdoorsy families and that once you are part of those groups, there's lots of opportunity to gear swap/borrow/etc.

Do you know about all the family programming the Mountaineers offers? Plus they have very low cost (dorm-style) lodges at or near our ski areas, and their own little lodge (Meany Lodge) past Hyak, with it's own tow rope. I gotta think if you were participating in Mountaineers (or any other club) activities, you'd have no trouble obtaining clothes for a growing kid. Plus you'd be part of a group of like-minded families.

Family Programs

Whether you're already an adventure enthusiast wanting to engage the rest of your family outside, or you are completely new to the outdoors in the Pacific Northwest, The Mountaineers can help you enjoy our natural world with your kids in a safe and fun environment.

www.mountaineers.org

*My caveat with Buy Nothing is that I have no idea how popular it is in Bellevue. That's where you live, right? Correct me if I'm wrong. I grew up on the Eastside, went to high school in Bellevue and my sister lives there. It's pretty easy for me to imagine that Buy Nothing may not be popular in what is a wealthy techy suburb. I can also see why it's harder to meet people over there.

 

[geargrrl]

How did we afford to ski as a family?

My husband joined the ski patrol at Mount Spokane, which as the largest volunteer patrol in the nation. One of the perks is family passes after you pass your first year of training. Family passes for four, for 15+ years? We tried to add up the value of this the other day as we have saved all of them. Equipment was purchased at the ski swap: swap volunteers (mandatory for patrol) get early access to all the shopping. In addition as a patroller my hub had access to lots of pro deals. Being as the mountain is only 33 miles from home we never had to worry about expense of lodging; only getting up there.

Bonus perk of lifetime passes for him and spouse after 25 years of volunteering.

Back to our regularly scheduled programming of affordable ski towns...

 

[Christy]

Funny, along the lines of what I was talking about in my last post, I just looked at my neighborhood FB group and saw this. This is the sort of thing I mean.

Hi neighbors - I think it would be a great idea to start a kids winter/snow boot bank, similar to the one for soccer cleats. Snow boots are such a short season item and kids feet grow so fast!!!
I have a shelving unit under my porch that is dry and I’m happy to host. If you think this is a good idea hit the like button and if you have kids snow boots to donate send me a PM and I’ll let you know the address.
Cross posted to Phinney/Greenlake Neighbors and Green Lake Parents Seattle

 

[sibhusky]

They do have story time, but it's on weekday mornings. I'm outgoing as well, and I'm sure I'll get there as I did before I had a baby. I'm just going to have to work for it! lol

Another issue is the clothing a child needs, and that's going to be a problem with skiing as well. I had no idea how quickly they grow out of clothes! A new shoe size every 2-3 months, and new wardrobe every season. The ski pants she wears one year won't fit the next. I don't have hand me downs, and people have said consignment sales are expensive and I'm better off buying new. But getting things on sale is so time consuming! I want to spend time with baby and not online trying to find inexpensive clothes. I'm just worried about being able to afford to ski now! How did you do it?

Well, locally there's 2 huge ski clubs which have swaps every year. I'm sure that's the case in most ski towns. We rented equipment seasonally for years. That way we could swap mid-season if needed. That meant no boots too big issue because I wasn't trying to guess what kind of growth spurt was about to happen.

 

[AJM]

I can't remember if Bend, OR has been mentioned. It's certainly growing by leaps and bounds. Seems like a friendly place. Bachelor is a 20-30 min drive for for everyone since there is no lodging anywhere near the mountain given the lack of private land.

Recently spent a few hours in Bend driving between Portland and Eagle Point. Ate at an indoor/outdoor "food court" that was a small collection of parked food trucks call the Podski. The pierogis were wonderful! It's across the street from the Box Factory. The Box Factory was brand new when I was in Bend in May 2018. Now there is a large multi-use development being built right next to it. I heard a man talking to a friend about how the real estate market was shifting quickly. He seemed to be a buy's agent. The two came in on bikes, each with a big dog.

Being on the other side of the world I've found this whole thread fascinating and had never heard of Bend (or many of the other places) until you mentioned it then whadayaknow a friend is over there attending an Avalanche conference .... very coincidental

 

[altagirl]

Being on the other side of the world I've found this whole thread fascinating and had never heard of Bend (or many of the other places) until you mentioned it then whadayaknow a friend is over there attending an Avalanche conference .... very coincidental

Honestly it's been a fascinating thread for someone who lives in Salt Lake City too. When we complain about crowds and look at housing prices being fairly crazy, it's like should we sell and... then do what? So the topic of "Where else would we want to live?" definitely comes up and it's great to hear the pros and cons of other areas from so many perspectives.

FWIW, I've done a mountain bike camp in Bend and it definitely struck me as a place I could see living. But that's mostly general vibe as a visitor without any real info.

 

[Christy]

Bend is such a mystery to me. I'd love to hear from someone that lives there. I can't figure out if it's just retirees and tourists or if there is a great community in general. All I ever hear about is the angst over its growth and the resulting problems. It's sure a pretty area with tons of outdoor stuff to do. Most people wouldn't call it affordable though. At least the Eastern Oregon successionists jerrymandered around it and left it out of their "Greater Idaho" movement though they are claiming other parts of Deschutes County.

 

[geargrrl]

Lots of threads about "what is it really like to live in Bend, OR" on Reddit......

 

[Amie H]

Another issue is the clothing a child needs, and that's going to be a problem with skiing as well. I had no idea how quickly they grow out of clothes! A new shoe size every 2-3 months, and new wardrobe every season. The ski pants she wears one year won't fit the next. I don't have hand me downs, and people have said consignment sales are expensive and I'm better off buying new. But getting things on sale is so time consuming! I want to spend time with baby and not online trying to find inexpensive clothes. I'm just worried about being able to afford to ski now! How did you do it?

I did not ski or really do anything sporty (except daily walk with the pram) when I was a new mom. That's another story.

But our budget was very tight back when my daughter was young. In our case, I chose to leave my job and be a SAHM so we halved our income. For her clothes, I shopped the sales if she needed anything for holidays, etc. But everyday items (once she was walking) were mostly from Target , in particular Hanes Sweats and Target brand leggings in mix& match colors and prints. (I believe now they are at Kohls or Walmart.) I'd also get her a few turtlenecks to go under them in the winter. They washed well (esp if a cotton/poly blend) and the bright colors/prints always looked cute and "put together." More importantly, I wasn't worried if she got them muddy outside or doing crafts because of the washability and low cost. I also used to pick up things on sale for her at Old Navy now and then. So I'd buy like 3 or 4 crewneck sweatshirts, and 5 or 6 sweatpants/leggings, and everything could go with each other. Then a few turtlenecks, some tees from clearance, maybe an elastic waist jeans from Old Navy, etc. But ALWAYS on sale. And she almost always went with me. I had a cover that slipped over the shopping cart seat so it was clean. It was like an outing for us, to do a little shopping together.

We also shopped a LOT of thrift stores and garage sales for books, shoes, washable plastic toys, etc.
I got her a great snowsuit from Sierra Trading post that "expanded" as the child grows. I don't recall the brand. I passed it along to my sister for her kids years ago. I will agree that already-curated children's resale stores aren't a huge money saver, except if you need, say a fancy dress for the holidays or what have you. I'm guessing you'd have to fit in such shopping trips on weekends or in the evening. Online shopping wasn't as much of a resource for me in the early 2000's as the internet was just starting to take hold, and there were no smartphones!

Children don't need fancy/technical skiwear when they are little. 2nd hand or Walmart snowpants and jackets are fine as long as they are warm and dry. We have a local chain of used sporting goods in Chicagoland called "Play It Again Sports" that is a great resource for kids sporting equipment and stuff like snowpants. Although she never wanted to ski, we did plenty of snow play/sledding, so I always kept an eye out for snow outerwear. When they are little, one piece snowsuits are the best! And easy pull-on boots.

A helmet plus on slope fees (tickets, rentals, lessons) would be your bigger expense. Lots of ski shop rent children's ski equipment for the season, so you hang on to the stuff for the season and return it in the Spring, then in late Fall, go in for another sizing/fitting.

PS - I just looked online and Carter's has some nice deals on little kids' everyday clothes in their "doorbusters" section.

 

[Christy]

Lots of threads about "what is it really like to live in Bend, OR" on Reddit......

You are right, there are a LOT. I only read the first Google result but it was entertaining. Bend is amazing, or shi**y and full of homelessness and trash. People are friendly and say hi to strangers, or they are aloof and snobby and avoid eye contact. Bend is perfect...but it has a lot of problems. Etc etc.

I suppose that's instructive. Every place is complex and experiences will be different. I've always thought whether a person finds a place "friendly" is a matter of luck and effort. My friends from Texas and the South tell me I'm wrong, that some places ARE friendlier. One just told me that after also detailing how her Texas city suppresses voting, so pick your poison I guess.

 

[Mish]

I live in Mammoth Lakes, CA and LOVE it. Have two kids, ages 9 and 6. They get $35 season passes through their school and participate in "Ski PE" where they bus up to the mountain twice a week to ski, as part of a school program. Currently they're doing a "Bike Squad" program through the town rec department where they're picked up right after school and ride their bikes around the area for a couple of hours. We're also involved in soccer and they have practices and games at a beautiful park called Shady Rest. In the summer there are tons of camps and endless hikes and swimming. They are absolutely thriving.

I can be out my door and on a lift in 15 minutes or less of easy town driving or public transport, depending on which lodge I choose. The snow is pretty consistent, and the season can be looooonnng (last season, for example!)

It's a great community. I have so many friends because the area self selects for people with very similar interests and views. It's a fairly progressive town and has voted Blue for as long as I've lived here (15 years). California is also great in that regard of course.

There's a wonderful local hospital for most of your needs (mammothhospital.org). There's a fantastic library, a community college, arts council, breweries and distilleries, free live music every weekend in the summer, free local transit, and absolutely stunning views. I have to pinch myself every time I go grocery shopping since the mountains behind Vons are so gorgeous!

There's two local airports, one right near Mammoth (MMH) and one in Bishop (BIH). It's also not too bad of a drive to go up to Reno or down to LA for more options. For getting around town, we hardly drive. We can walk, bike, or get the free bus almost anywhere.

I'm not a huge shopper so can easily get what I need through the occasional Target or Amazon online order. There's a robust parent's network for hand-me-down clothing and gear, plus a few thrift stores in town.

I work from home, and have 1gig internet service.

The two negatives: housing prices, and forest fires. The town is building a bunch of new affordable housing (The Parcel), so once that comes online (later this year, I think) it should alleviate rental prices. Buying a place is going to be harder; basic condos are half a million. The market is definitely cooling off though after the Covid frenzy.

Like others said, forest fires are sadly just going to be something to deal with anywhere out west (.... and out east, apparently, after this last summer). We have air filters, and are going to get heat pumps (despite the name, they also cool) so when the air is bad we can flick both on and be comfortable inside. There is active management of the "donut" of trees surrounding the town with thinning and prescribed burns. It's not foolproof, but they're paying attention.

Let me know if you have any questions and good luck!