April 24-25, 2018, Mammoth-Closed
4/24/18
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The beginning of the story. We usually head south from Lake Tahoe towards Mammoth and places south towards Mt. Whitney. After leaving Bridgeport we noticed the snow pack was getting smaller. Hmmm. We checked out many of our backcountry climbing/touring spots and had another 'hmmm'. We've checked a few trip websites and have seen a lot of reports about hiking with boots and skis carried on a pack. We have a reputation of driving to the snow and putting on the skins and starting to climb right away with minimal walking involved. After driving to 10,000' on Rock Creek Road we confirmed that we needed to go back to Mammoth.
Yes, Mammoth is still open but one half of the resort is CLOSED. The Main Lodge and the Mill are operating with all the lifts and Gondola. We drove to the Eagle Lodge at 7950' – it has some snow but the exposure is lower and gets the sun. The Canyon Lodge is at 8350', the exposure is ideal, and the area was closed. So, this is where we started skinning. We could park the campervan next to the snow, but we instead parked next to the trees that will provide shade. I realize that we had to walk 40' from the shade to the snow to put on the skins – but having the van in the shade made it worth it.
This is the first day for Jill to put on the skins and I only had 2 days at Snoqualmie. There were a couple of employees working at the lodge and we just smiled and they gave a wave. I like this place. You can skin up anything that you see. Yes, you could skin up from 8350' to 11,000' if you wanted to. On the 24th we climbed about 900' and we both felt good. You select a trail and start smiling. The ski down was with perfect spring snow. It was sunny with a slight wind. An employee on a snowmobile stopped near the top of the lift area that we'd climbed to and mentioned the forest fire sending up smoke in the distance. None of us knew the cause, so she call the office and learned that it was a "prescribed burn". We chatted a bit and then started our run down.
On April 25th we went back to Canyon Lodge, parked in the shaded tree area, and selected another trail with a slightly different exposure. Yes, it was perfect spring snow and we had a great run laying down "figure eight" turns. WOW, this is getting better and better. Too much fun!.
Yes, Mammoth is still open but one half of the resort is CLOSED. The Main Lodge and the Mill are operating with all the lifts and Gondola. We drove to the Eagle Lodge at 7950' – it has some snow but the exposure is lower and gets the sun. The Canyon Lodge is at 8350', the exposure is ideal, and the area was closed. So, this is where we started skinning. We could park the campervan next to the snow, but we instead parked next to the trees that will provide shade. I realize that we had to walk 40' from the shade to the snow to put on the skins – but having the van in the shade made it worth it.
This is the first day for Jill to put on the skins and I only had 2 days at Snoqualmie. There were a couple of employees working at the lodge and we just smiled and they gave a wave. I like this place. You can skin up anything that you see. Yes, you could skin up from 8350' to 11,000' if you wanted to. On the 24th we climbed about 900' and we both felt good. You select a trail and start smiling. The ski down was with perfect spring snow. It was sunny with a slight wind. An employee on a snowmobile stopped near the top of the lift area that we'd climbed to and mentioned the forest fire sending up smoke in the distance. None of us knew the cause, so she call the office and learned that it was a "prescribed burn". We chatted a bit and then started our run down.
On April 25th we went back to Canyon Lodge, parked in the shaded tree area, and selected another trail with a slightly different exposure. Yes, it was perfect spring snow and we had a great run laying down "figure eight" turns. WOW, this is getting better and better. Too much fun!.
Sierras are so great! Easy access and laid back scene.
Another awesome TR. I loved my one and only trip to Mammoth last June. I was lucky enough to meet a local who showed me around. We ended up doing a cool boot pack from the top that ended in a run to the closed canyon lodge. Love that you debated between parking in the shade and parking right by the snow. I had the same debate and opted to park right by the snow in the mill lot. Car ended up like a greenhouse and all my ice melted but I was stoked to be literally 'slope side'. Keep on getting those turns!
Cheers Zap - I'm still waiting for pictures of the camper van critter!
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