Feel on top of the world quickly, with this very basic backcountry route to the top of Potato Hill. This route is suitable for almost any beginner backcountry enthusiast out there.
- Distance: 4.5 mi
- Time: 2 hr
- Elevation Gain: 1,145 ft
- When we went: April 8 – Snowpack very low
- Trailhead: Potato Hill Sno-Park
- Can you ski back to the car? Yes
- Route Finding Difficulty: Easy
- Physical Exertion Difficulty: Easy
- Map
Getting there: The trailhead is really easy to get to for this adventure, since it is literally right off of US 20/ OR-126. Head to Potato Hill Sno-Park and park. When you arrive, you’ll see the unplowed road NF-830 and head into the trees from there. Because you’re following a road, there’s very minimal route-finding skills needed.
You will continue up this road (passing a few turns to the right) until it ends in a clearing that has great views and appears to be where some people might go to have bonfires or hang out when the road is open. From here, to your right is the small summit of Potato Hill. Finally, skin up the hill to where it flattens out. If you want to drop your gear and go walk and have a look around, now is the time!
This run through the sparse trees is short, so if the powder is good, you may find yourself wanting to lap it, as it only takes 10-15 minutes to hike back up. Lastly, when you’re done for the day, you should be able to keep your speed back down the road in most spots. Unfortunately, we had to unstrap our back foot a few times for an extra push, but you shouldn’t need to skin out!
Note that this is a very simple and beginner friendly backcountry area! That being said, it is a little lower in elevation (4,000-5,000 ft) than other options in Central Oregon. So when we went in early April, there were a lot of bare spots on the road heading up.
GEAR:
PROS:
- Easy route-finding
- No need for a high clearance vehicle to get to the trailhead
- Pretty views
CONS:
- Not a long or steep downhill
THE SPLIT DECISION:
Jay’s Take: “This would be a great beginning backcountry route for anyone interested in dipping their toes into splitboarding. It is very easy to do, from skinning up, to route finding, to snowboarding down.”
Tyese’s Take: “This spot is a great place to dip your toes into skinning if you’re new to it. Easy route-finding, nothing hard or scary, quiet and peaceful. That being said, although it was beautiful, there’s a lot of other spots I like better and I probably don’t need to do this route again. Moreover, there wasn’t enough fun downhill involved. However, you could easily mix the group up though, and bring your snowshoe buddies along.”
