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CHRIS BOREL
from OXNARD
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Jan 24, 2008 |
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Overall Rating: 4.0   |
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The terrain on this mountain is awesome. Whatever your looking for they have from big wide open bowls, narrow chutes, steeps and bumps. If your looking for groomers they have plenty of that also. Do to the high altitude tree runs are somewhat slim.
Think snow! They measure in feet not inches. Plenty of powder days not to mention the best wind buff you'll ever encounter. Beware of crowds on the big holidays, although any where you go on these days you will find crowds.
Mammoth also is known for the best spring skiing in the country. Sunny days, great corn snow, and late spring storms always passing through. On a good season you can ski as late as the 4th of July.
It's a long drive from the closest major airport and can be tough getting there without renting a car but the public transportion in town is great and the night life has really improved.
Mammoth Mountain lives up to its name, its big. Their is something for everyone. You need to experience this place and find out for yourself.
Snow, Ski, Ride, Eat, Sleep...
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Betzalel Eichenbaum
from Encino, California
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Sep 19, 2007 |
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| Overall Rating: 4.2 |
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Mammoth has everything, steeps, wide bowls, trees, groomed runs deep powder on powder days and lots of wide runs. You can easily traverse the mountain using the great lift system from side to side and front to back and not get tired of the variety. Big mountain with lots to do.
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Bobby Jones
from Superior, Wisconsin
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Mar 17, 2007 |
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| Overall Rating: 4.6 |
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Gotta love Cali and everything in it! Mammoth is the best resort west of Colorado by far! Coming back soon i hope!
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II Tone
from california
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Feb 20, 2007 |
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| Overall Rating: 4.8 |
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I ve hit this snow a few times maybe its just when i go but i always have a great run and its never too crowded. I never have any problems with the local love.
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Bill
from Los Angeles
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Jun 16, 2006 |
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| Overall Rating: 4.4 |
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Some of the reviews below liken Mammoth's snow to an "icerink" or claim that it has "just as much "hard pack. slush, or ice ... as at any other resort (east coast or west coast)".
I don't see how anyone who has skied the East Coast or skied Mammoth with any regularity could make statements like that.
Look at the facts. Mammmoth sits in a bit of a notch in the crest of the Sierra, and for that reason, it gets pummeled with frequent snow storms. The Main Lodge is at 9000 feet, so it is very, very unusual for that snow to melt between storms.
Hard snow is possible at some times of the year, of course ... for example, in the late spring or early summer. But that is the norm for spring skiing before it turns to corn snow, and that is long after almost all the other resorts have closed for the season.
Yea, Mammoth can be crowded. Much of it is above treeline skiing. And the snow is not usually Wasatch-light. But East Coast "icy" or "hard"? An "icerink"?
Nuh-uh.
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William
from Cleveland, OH
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Mar 11, 2006 |
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| Overall Rating: 2.0 |
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Mammoth was one of my first big mountain experiences (I lived in Cali for several years), and at that time I thought this place was great. Having skied many other big resorts in the US, I now realize that this place isn't so great. The 3,500 vertical sounds impressive, but most people are not going to tackle the front bowl, which means you end up skiing at most 1700 or so vertical, no better than your small to average resort.
Getting from one area of the mountain to another can be a bear, requiring you to traverse and take several lifts. There is virtually no nightlife. Crowds on the weekend can be ridiculous. Long, snow free periods, coupled with warmer weather can turn this place into one giant ice skating rink. The terrain can become downright boring, just one wide, straight shot-down-the-mountain type of trail after another.
Fact is, there are places with better snow (Utah), more interesting terrain (just about any New England resort), better nightlife (Colorado), and more activities (ton of places), and many resorts that have all of these qualities.
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Dave in Sacramento
from Sacramento, CA
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Feb 25, 2006 |
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| Overall Rating: 3.6 |
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Not really a review. I loaded Chairs in Winter 1982. Kind of have a hankering to go back sometime. From the looks of the website it looks like it's changed a fair amount. It's so easy to drive up to a choice of about 10 or 15 Areas in Tahoe that it's tough to justify driving down to Mammoth Lakes. Went there a lot as a kid, we lived in Bakersfield then. I miss the Owens Valley drive, cool place not many know about.
Agree with the sentiment of the review which said the Eastern Sierra setting is beautiful, definitely true.
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Jonathan
from Pasadena, CA
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Dec 3, 2005 |
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| Overall Rating: 1.8 |
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I echo many of the complaints of the reviewer below. However, when I start assigning ratings to these factors, I can't rate this place a 4.0 When it comes down to it, the two most important things in any mountain are the terrain and the conditions. If you hit this place after a snowstorm, the conditions are great. But what place isn't great after a snowstorm? Odds are you can encounter just as much hard pack. slush, or ice here as at any other resort (east coast or west coast). When it comes to terrain, there just are not enough trails that measure up to repeated runs.
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Vic
from Los Angeles
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Oct 26, 2005 |
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| Overall Rating: 4.0 |
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I have skied at countless places including all of the major resorts in North America and many in Europe. When it is all said and done, Mammoth has the best combination of terrain, snow, and amenities. If I had to pick just one place to ski over and over, Mammoth would be it. So if you're reading this trying to decide if you should ski there, the answer is an unequivocal "yes". Go.
I have my complaints:
I agree with Easterners who bemoan the uninteresting character of a lot of Mammoth's runs ... many are like freeways instead of trails. They are less of an adventure (like Pollux in Taos, for example), and more of a pretty straight shot to the bottom of the chairlift.
The snow is often heavy. But it is reliable, and if you hit it first thing in the morning, it's usually more than light enough for an accomplished powder skier.
I agree with those that say the town doesn't have the character it should. The current owners are working to fix that (the North Village is a good start) but it will be a long time coming.
It is often windy. VERY windy.
Weekends are usually crowded. This is an issue for intermediate skiers mostly. Lifts that serve primarily advanced/expert terrain are typically ski-on affairs. If the crowds get to you, there is always June Mountain, a small, but wonderful little gem of a resort only 12 miles away.
It's big, but the quality of much of the terrain is weather dependent. The Chair 15 area has a southern exposure, and gets heavy/wet easily. It is a good place for tree skiing during or right after one of the frequent storms (and this is where you can find some of the more interesting terrain).
All that being said, Mammoth has good to very good snow and oodles of it, great advanced terrain (in my experience, only Snowbird, Jackson Hole, and Squaw hope to do better), while having ample intermediate terrain as well (all of the above resorts do not), although often lacking the character of a destination resort, plenty of places with vastly different price points to relax, hang out, or chase women in your down time (another thing many major resorts lack).
And last but not least, Mammoth sits in the Eastern Sierra ... which is one of the most beautiful and soulful places on Earth.
Go for it and keep 'em up.
