The Best Ski Resort in California Is Officially Open for the Season
It’s already time to shred fresh powder, thanks to mother nature and a major investment in new snow blowers.
At parks across Southern California last weekend parents were tossing off their flannel shirts, shedding puffer jackets, and urgently calling their partners to please, please change their coffee orders to iced instead of hot—we are well into November, but in classic SoCal fashion it is still 70 degrees and sunny. Just a few hours’ drive up Highway 395 in Mammoth, though, it looks a lot more like winter: Mammoth Mountain is now officially open, and ski season has begun in California.
Mammoth Mountain is one of the best ski resorts in California—and, therefore, one of the best in the country—and this year it is also the first ski resort to open in the state. They’ve been blowing snow on the mountain for the last two weeks, and thanks to nine inches of snowfall last week they were able to open four lifts and five trails last weekend. Those numbers will continue to increase as they are able to manufacture more snow, especially since the weather looks to stay cold this week, with a potential further dumping of snow later in the week or next weekend.
Right now most of the available runs are at the beginner and intermediate levels, including runs like Broadway, Saddle Bowl, Silver Tip, Rusty’s, and Sesame Street, but it shouldn’t be long before more runs are open for the black diamond shredders out there.
We have mother nature to thank for this early opening, but also plenty of human intention: the folks at Mammoth Mountain made a major investment in their snowmaking capabilities over the summer. They spent some $3.5 million to make their snowblowers more energy efficient and effective, and they also added 27 new snowblowers across some of the mountain’s most popular runs. And there is also an updated chairlift on Broadway Express, one of the mountain’s most popular chairs. It will now be a six-seat detachable lift, which mountain officials say should increase uphill capacity by as much as 25%.
Mammoth is an extremely popular ski destination because of the quality of the mountain, but the town of Mammoth Lakes is also one of the best winter getaways from LA. The drive up 395 is beautiful and feels quick, and there are tons of great things to do in Mammoth. For more about Mammoth Lakes, check out Thrillist’s essential guides to things to do and where to eat in Mammoth, both of which will soon be updated for the 2024–2025 season.