Chair 23 skiing snowboarding spring snow dropout wipeout chutes
Chair 23, still providing access to many great turns.
Chair 23 skiing snowboarding spring snow dropout wipeout chutes
Chair 23, still providing access to many great turns.

MAMMOTH CONDITIONS REPORT | When the beach weather’s so very nice it certainly can be difficult to think snow… Understood. Even around Mammoth Lakes GREEN is the predominant color these days. Regardless, there’s snow in them hills and the clock is ticking – only 11 days and counting to get some lift-served turns in California.

The snowpack is thinning and the bare spots are growing fast… Yet there’s still a lot of snow up high and it has been corning up nicely. And, to accommodate for the soft, sticky afternoon conditions, Mammoth has shifted it’s hours of operation to 7:30am-2:00pm.

Have a season pass? I say use it. The weather’s great, snow’s great and there’s no better exercise than skiing, snowboarding, telemarking, etc.

spring skiing and snowboarding in the eastern sierra
Big ol' slush bumps at the top of Dropout 1... This stuff is fun and very forgiving.
spring skiing and snowboarding in California May 2012
Want to make turns on Climax? Mid-week you can hike from the top of Cornice Bowl. Most that put in the effort would say it's worth it.

The PROS:

  • The snow’s softening early. Get on the hill early, get off early, have half the day to do whatever else you please.
  • On-piste conditions are great – the snow here tends to be less sticky.
  • Off-piste conditions on the upper mountain have been holding up really well – still more corny than mashy.
  • There are big ol’ misshaped bumps/moguls all over. Given how soft the snow’s been you can “smash” through ‘em just about however you like.
  • Some runs are closed early in the day due to race camps. These can be great runs to hit up once the gates have been pulled and the CLOSED signs come down.
  • Mid-week the upper Gondola is closed which makes for an added challenge if you want to take runs off the top. Making the hike from Cornice Bowl to Climax is almost worth it though – the snow up there is corny, deep and not overly sticky.
  • It’s eerily quite out there these days.
spring snow corn skiing and snowboarding season May 2012
Is the riding good at Mammoth right now? All depends on how you look at it.
bump mogul skiing snowboarding spring snow conditions Chair 3
Pre bump line on the Face of 3. This isn't going to be around much longer.
Chair 1 Broadway Express spring riding snow conditions
Your white carpet, from the top of Broadway Express.

The CONS:

  • Chair 2/Stump Alley is done for the season. It’s all good, anything down that low is too sticky anyhow.
  • Even though Broadway remains nice and wide it’s starting to look pretty thin.
  • Hangman’s? Done.
  • After 11am any flat slope, especially down low around Main, is slow-going. Bottom of St. Anton after Noon is a slog.
  • Access to some favorite spots is getting tricky, i.e. West Bowl.
  • Lift tickets are still $69 (that’s w/o a My Mammoth discount, which is available to anyone that knows how to breath), which seems a bit high. Anyone want to throw in their 2 cents here?
Chair 2 Stump Alley closed for the season
Stump Alley is no mas.
Broadway skiing snowboarding spring snow conditions
MMSA is working hard to keep Broadway alive just a little bit longer... Will it make it through Memorial Day weekend?

PARK REPORT:

  • Chair 6 has still been spinning which is a bit of a surprise.
  • Superpipe is long gone.
  • Main Park and that’s about all – 4 jibs and 1 jump.
  • Get it while you still can… Nothing like a lil bit o’ spring jibbin’.
  • Bottom jump’s nice right now. Wax them boards and you’ll be able to sesh it ‘til a bit later in the day.
Unbound freeride skiing snowboarding jumps and jibs
Bottom jump at Main is the last booter standing.
spring snow freeride skiing and snowboarding in California
Green grass? Spring has sprung at Mammoth.
spring snow conditions skiing snowboarding superpipe half pipe
You know the half pipe is done when...

The STATS:

  • New Snow: No. Category to be removed shortly.
  • Base: Shrinking faster
  • Weather: A few clouds here and there, a light, occasional breeze… Otherwise we’re looking at some pretty consistent highs of 60-70. The lazy dayz of spring are here.
  • Conditions: A lot of soft, spring corn. Getting pretty sticky below the top of Chair 1 in the afternoon.
  • Lifts: Lift line-up for mid-week – 1, 3, 6, and 23.
  • Runs: The list of ride-able runs is shrinking.

Bottom line: Remember, only 11 more days of lift served skiing and snowboarding. After that, unless you have some long-distance travel plans lined up, you’ll have to wait ‘til October or later before doing this again. Get out there and enjoy it while you still can.

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9 replies on “$69 Lift Tickets… The Snow’s Great, But Is It $69 Great? Mammoth Conditions Report | May 18, 2012”