The Swampy Sno-Park is located 16 miles from Bend, Oregon along Highway 46, better known as the Cascades Lake Highway. The trailhead for this sno-park sits at an elevation around 5,800 feet, and is just a few miles up the road from the Meissner Sno-Park. Although there are numerous trails in the area which range from easy to moderately difficult, here are several popular ski and snowshoe loops.
Swampy Loop
For skiers, the Swampy Loop trail to the Swampy Lakes shelter travels through thickets of lodgepole pine and mountain hemlock and across quiet meadows. This 4-mile loop offers some rolling terrain for cross country skiers.
The Swampy shelter was built in the 1988 and provides a great spot for winter enthusiasts to get out of the weather, warm up next to the woodstove and have lunch. Camping in the shelter is not allowed.
Snowshoers can reach the Swampy shelter via the Porcupine Snowshoe Loop trail. Just over 4 miles long, the eastern portion of the loop climbs 400 feet up Telemark Butte.
Swede Ridge Loop
From the Swampy shelter or Swampy Loop trail, skiers can travel east along on the Swede Ridge Loop trail to connect with the Swede Ridge Shelter before returning to the Swampy Loop trail. Many skiers take this 4.6-mile loop clockwise. Snowshoers should walk at least 2 feet to the side of the ski tracks.
Nordeen Loop
Named in honor of Emil Nordeen, a Swedish immigrant to the area in the 1920s, this shelter is perched on a ridge overlooking the Meissner Sno-Park. A ski pioneer, Nordeen competed in the rugged Crater Lake Wilderness Race, a 42-mile round-trip Nordic ski race in 1927. He made a pair of skis out of Ponderosa pine lumber; the skis weighed 15 pounds. Nordeen won the race in 1929 and 1931.
Named in honor of Nordeen, the shelter was built in 1980, but burned to the ground in February of 2007. The Central Oregon Nordic Club and Deschutes National Forest raised funds to rebuild the shelter and the new shelter remains a popular destination for Nordic skiers and snowshoers.
Nordic skiers glide along the Nordeen Loop to reach this shelter, while snowshoers strike out along the marked snowshoe trail. The entire snowshoe loop is approximately 5.5 miles long – including the out and back to the shelter – and the Nordeen ski loop is 3.9 miles long.
Tangent Loop Connecting to Meissner Sno-Park
From the Swampy Sno-Park, cross-country skiers can take the Tangent Loop trail, a groomed ski trail, to the Meissner Sno-Park. The Tangent oop is 5.9 miles long.
No Dogs, No Snowmobiles on the Trails
The snowy trails in the Swampy Lakes area are dog- and motorized-free. There are other sno-parks in the vicinity that are open to dogs or snowmobiles, to accommodate all user groups.
Nordic ski trails in the Swampy area are marked with blue diamonds, while the snowshoe trails have golden snowshoer icons emblazoned inside blue diamond signs. Sharp turns in the trail are marked with black directional arrows. Trail maps may be available at the trailhead and it is highly recommended to carry a map while enjoying the Nordic ski and snowshoe trails in the Swampy Lakes area.
Damian Fagan - I am a freelance writer and photographer living in the Pacific Northwest, although I lived in Utah for over 20 years. I've written ...
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