Experiences You Should Have Podcast Show Notes

Listen to the above episode on Cross Country Skiing Virginia Meissner in Bend, Oregon

Interview with Alyce Pearce on Cross Country Skiing

Alyce Pearce lives in Bend, Oregon and she is a cross country skiing enthusiast. Her passion for skiing was borne from the gnarled foothills of the Adirondacks in the early 1970s, and continues today. From her start just down the road at her one-rope-tow community area, Indian Hill, to mom-and-pop ski areas all the way to the Rockies, nordic, alpine and telemark skiing have been the thread that tied her life experiences together. A writer, teacher and entrepreneur, she now revels in the sweet reward of getting to chase her own two teen boys on the trails. Alyce joined the podcast to tell all on cross country skiing in Bend, Oregon at Virginia Meissner Sno-park.

Alyce Pearce and her boys in front of the Meissner Lodge

Where is Meissner Sno Park?

Virginia Meissner Sno Park is 13 miles SW of Bend on the right side of Century Drive. If you are headed to Mt. Bachelor from Bend, it's on your right before you get to Bachelor. You need a sno-park pass to park there which is available through the Oregon DMV and various outdoor stores around Bend. Virginia Meissner sno park is one of the best places to go cross country skiing in Central Oregon because of its vastness of groomed trails and you don't need an expensive ski resort pass to go there. That said, it's recommended to donate to the sno park as they depend on donations for grooming.

If the parking is full at Virginia Meissner, you can also access Meissner cross country trails at Swampy Lakes Sno Park. They are encouraging people to park responsibly and to use both parking areas.

Map of Virginia Meissner Cross Country Ski Trails (Near Bend)

There are some really wonderful loops you can tie together from the Meissner Shelter that don’t require too much commitment if you’re a newer skier, and offer some tranquil, gentle skiing...Mushroom Trails and Mistletoe for beginners.

If you're an expert skier, head out to the Shooting Star shelter. It's not for the faint of heart as there is a significant climb and descent.

A Favorite Memory of Alyce Pearce Cross Country Skiing at Meissner

It’s another brisk morning Alyce managed to get out nordic skiing alone. Rhythms of her breath meeting the cadence of her strides as she glided over soft, silky smooth snow. She always made sure to look around in these moments of snowy solitude. The ponderosa limbs and needles sagging under the weight of new snow. Glints of sunlight as it refracts through the branches. Alyce turned off onto her favorite outer loop, savoring the gentle descent that comes before the long hill climb that she loves to hate.

When she came around a curve, Alyce caught a glimpse of a petite fox whose fur radiated with shades of amber. The fox glanced back at her as he rounded the corner further ahead. Alyce considered herself lucky, then she rounded the next curve, and there he was trotting along the trail, still glancing back, seemingly not concerned, nor disappearing as she expected. For the next half mile, they silently shared the forest and solitude. It became a game. Will he be around the next corner, she wondered? Finally, at the bottom of the hill, he cast one last look her way before weightlessly drifting over the snowbank and out of sight.