Mammoth Mountain 4/20/98


Current Road Conditions \| Current Ski Conditions \| Today's Cam Photo
Base : 7,953' Summit: 11,053' Vertical : 3,100' Chairlifts: 29	30% beginner 40% intermediate 30% advanced Lodging: (800)228-4947 Snowphone: (888)SNOWRPT

Show your 97'/98' valid season pass from any other ski area and Mammoth will offer you $5 off an adult all day lift ticket. This offer good through the end of the 97'/98' season... July 4th!

Hello folks, Matt Winter coming to you once again from the spacious offices of SNOWEB central. It's April 20-that's right folks-4/20, and Tony 2K and I were fortunate enough to have spent the day skiing one of my favorites, Mammoth Mountain! As we traveled south on U.S. 395 from Tahoe, the sun began its climb up and over the ridgetops, bringing with it the promise of a beautiful spring day. Folks, if you haven't skied in the Sierras during the spring, you have missed out on one of Mother Nature's finest festivals. Springtime in the Sierras means tee-shirts, sunblock, barbecues on the deck and tons of sweet turns in pure buttery corn snow. This day was no exception as we arrived to a gorgeous sunny day; the mountain lit up like a giant playground.
	I could barely contain myself as we rode up the Gondola to the top of the hill (11,053'), anticipating my first turns of the day. From here, it's a 3,100' vertical drop back to the base, and we decided to take Dave's Run for a warm-up. This run is a black diamond slope where we found some very nice turns on snow that was still slightly firm from the previous night.
From the bottom of Dave's we traversed through Rooster Tail and into Christmas Bowl, stopping to take a look at the fumarole along the way. The fumarole is a sulfur vent, which constantly ejects clouds of stinky smoke into the atmosphere. The spot is roped off from the public for safety, and a sign warns "STAY BACK-HOT GASSES", which is fine because the area smells like rotten eggs anyway. From here we skied off to our right, and into Waterfall, a double diamond pitch that leads down into the Lower Dry Creek area, a fun gully that had filled in considerably since my last trip to Mammoth. We followed Dry Creek into Easy Rider, a huge groomed face that leads you to Stump Alley Express, a high-speed quad chair.
We rode Stump Alley back up and took a trip through The Unbound, Mammoth's terrain park. There were some massive jumps in the park, and there were lots of people getting some pretty impressive air time. We skied down to the base area and went to the car to shed a layer of clothing and pick up the video camera. After walking back up through the parking lot, we rode Broadway Express back up to mid-mountain. From the top of Broadway Express we skied over to Face Lift Express, another high-speed quad chair. This chair takes you up to the top of Rooster Tail, which leads into the Dry Creek area. This is one of my favorite sections of the mountain to play in, so Tony and I skied down it and shot some excellent video on the way through. We rode Stump Alley Express back up and decided that it was time to start racking up some vertical feet, so we started to make laps on the Gondola. Our first trip back up the Gondola, we decided to ski down through Climax, a double diamond slope filled with some excellent spring snow-soft enough to do just about anything you like in. After loading the Gondola at the mid-mountain loading station, we opted to ski over to the Drop Out Chutes, three double diamond chutes filled with some sweet corn snow. After we made a couple of laps here, first skiing Drop Out 2, the next time Drop Out 3, we decided to make a trip down to the Canyon Lodge area. We traversed over to Downhill, a gentle groomed run that enabled me to carry as much speed as possible while making some very nice carved turns. We rode back up Canyon Express, a high-speed quad (these things seem to be everywhere you look), and took Solitude back down to the base for another trip up the Gondola. We were able to get in two more laps on the Gondola before the sun started to sink behind the ridgetops, signaling the end of another perfect day at Mammoth Mountain. As we skied back down to the car on our final run, I couldn't help but remember how kind the mountain had been to us one more time, and definitely felt the need for a return trip as soon as possible.
	During the return trip to Tahoe, I had lots of time to reflect on the great day we had and how wonderful the season has been to this point. I find that every time I leave Mammoth, I feel as though I just got away with something, and I did-a fun filled day of revelry.
I've said it before, and will say it again, folks-Mammoth Mountain is one of the finest ski areas that I have enjoyed in twenty-two years of skiing. I would definitely recommend this resort to all skiers, regardless of ability, as this place has something to offer to everyone, and plenty of it!! Once again, I am signing off , so until next time, folks-PRAY FOR SNOW!!!

Message Matt's Mailbox

This page was prepared by Sierra Web Design. Email webmaster@sierraweb.com for comments or details on our services to Ski Areas and Resorts. For information about SnoWeb advertising & sponsorship placement rates and submission guidelines, contact SnoWeb Sales:
v# (702) 833-9500.