What to Know Before You Ride COTA's Winter Fat Bike Trails at Wanoga Sno-Park
One of the nice things about fat biking in the winter is the trails are never the same day to day and often hour to hour. Check the weather before you go out. Be prepared; carry extra warm clothes. Yield to snowshoers and skiers.
Please Help Keep Trails Open by Respecting Trail Etiquette on the Wanoga trails
• Weekends and Holidays – park in the upper Wanoga snowmobile parking lot and ride down to the lower Sno-Play area.
• We share the ski and snowshoe trailhead on the north side of the Sno-Play parking lot.
• Start out by following the snowshoe loop. Mind your speed! PLEASE stay off the ski loops. Do not ride on or in the classic tracks.
• Wide tires 3.8″ or wider. No exceptions.
• Important: TIRE PRESSURE – 4 PSI is a good starting point adjust based on current conditions. Your sidewalls should wrinkle like a funny-car tire.
• If you’re leaving ruts, it's too soft to ride.
• Yield to all other users when riding.
Sno-Park Permits Are Required
A Sno-Park Permit is required when parking in any Oregon State Sno-Park between November 1 and April 30. Pick one up at Pine Mountain Sports, Sunnyside Sports, Powderhouse, the Forest Service office, or Central Oregon Adventures (snowmobile yurt in the upper Wanoga lot).
Nordic Ski Trails
• COTA recommends staying off any of the groomed nordic trails and any classic tracks to reduce user conflict and/or degrade groomed trails.
Snowshoe Trails
• Snowshoe trails are open to our use. Watch your speed and yield to snowshoe hikers. Be friendly!
Snowmobile Trails
• There are many rideable miles of snowmobile trails and fat bikes are allowed to ride on them in the Deschutes National Forest.
• When riding on snowmobile trails, use a front white blinker and rear red blinker at all times. Wear reflective material on both the front and rear of your body.
• Stay to the far right of the trail and yield to snowmobiles. You won’t have any problem knowing they are coming.
• Be prepared. Winter travel in the backcountry requires carrying proper gear and dressing properly. Be self-sufficient.
• Use extreme caution when riding at night. Be visible.
• Be friendly! Fat bikers are the newest trail users. In many areas of the country fatbikes are NOT allowed on snowmobile trails. Be happy we can use them.
You can get maps at the FS office and at the snowmobile trailheads. You can find a GeoPDF map here. Download to your smart phone and know where you are.
Expect to meet snowmobiles, dog sleds, and skate skiers on the trails. Snowmobilers often use hand signals to communicate with others - see below. Also, they may hold up fingers signifying how many in their group.
Please Help Keep Trails Open by Respecting Trail Etiquette on the Wanoga trails
• Weekends and Holidays – park in the upper Wanoga snowmobile parking lot and ride down to the lower Sno-Play area.
• We share the ski and snowshoe trailhead on the north side of the Sno-Play parking lot.
• Start out by following the snowshoe loop. Mind your speed! PLEASE stay off the ski loops. Do not ride on or in the classic tracks.
• Wide tires 3.8″ or wider. No exceptions.
• Important: TIRE PRESSURE – 4 PSI is a good starting point adjust based on current conditions. Your sidewalls should wrinkle like a funny-car tire.
• If you’re leaving ruts, it's too soft to ride.
• Yield to all other users when riding.
Sno-Park Permits Are Required
A Sno-Park Permit is required when parking in any Oregon State Sno-Park between November 1 and April 30. Pick one up at Pine Mountain Sports, Sunnyside Sports, Powderhouse, the Forest Service office, or Central Oregon Adventures (snowmobile yurt in the upper Wanoga lot).
Nordic Ski Trails
• COTA recommends staying off any of the groomed nordic trails and any classic tracks to reduce user conflict and/or degrade groomed trails.
Snowshoe Trails
• Snowshoe trails are open to our use. Watch your speed and yield to snowshoe hikers. Be friendly!
Snowmobile Trails
• There are many rideable miles of snowmobile trails and fat bikes are allowed to ride on them in the Deschutes National Forest.
• When riding on snowmobile trails, use a front white blinker and rear red blinker at all times. Wear reflective material on both the front and rear of your body.
• Stay to the far right of the trail and yield to snowmobiles. You won’t have any problem knowing they are coming.
• Be prepared. Winter travel in the backcountry requires carrying proper gear and dressing properly. Be self-sufficient.
• Use extreme caution when riding at night. Be visible.
• Be friendly! Fat bikers are the newest trail users. In many areas of the country fatbikes are NOT allowed on snowmobile trails. Be happy we can use them.
You can get maps at the FS office and at the snowmobile trailheads. You can find a GeoPDF map here. Download to your smart phone and know where you are.
Expect to meet snowmobiles, dog sleds, and skate skiers on the trails. Snowmobilers often use hand signals to communicate with others - see below. Also, they may hold up fingers signifying how many in their group.
PSI charts for the technically minded:
