Mammoth Mountain Ski Area Information & Overview

The Mammoth Mountain Ski Area is one Massive Mountain. That’s why it’s named Mammoth… when you come here to play, the opportunities are just about endless.

With 3100 vertical feet of skiing and snowboarding, much of it above the tree line, and a high base lodge at 9000 feet, you are going to get some great snow and the best snowpack in the west.

In the late 40s, Dave McCoy had a vision and dream, and today, Mammoth Mountain Ski Area is one of the world’s best ski and snowboard areas.

It was a big dream that no one else wanted to tackle. So Dave, along with his crew and investors, went to work one day at a time on Mammoth Mountain.

50 years later, we have been left with a Mecca of a ski and snowboard area.

Mammoth Mountain Ski Area has everything from above tree line bowls to endless groomed runs, unbound parks, tree-lined powder runs, powder, the wind buff machine, groomed packed powder, and come spring, the perfect corn snow to ride on.

Mammoth Mountain Ski Area tops out at an elevation of 11,053 Feet

The snow season runs from late October/ early November through May and can run all the way to July 4th on some of the bigger snow years. One year they ran from October 8th – August 16th. In 2017 the ski area went all the way to August 6th, even with a very warm summer on hand.

The mammoth mountain snowpack is one of the most consistent worldwide. With a 9000-foot mid-mountain base center, the Main Lodge can offer skiing from late October to July 4th.

Funny how people say it never rains or snows in California. Mammoth Snowfalls can range from an average of around 350 inches at the 8000-foot level to well over 500 inches up at 11,053 feet. In big snow years, we can almost double those numbers.

The Weather here in Mammoth during the winter is about 70% sunny … with that said, we can get some 3-week storm cycles that offer up day after day of powder skiing. We can also get 3 weeks with just a couple of storms here and there.

The Lifts
Mammoth’s lift system offers up to 23 chairs, 3 gondolas, three pomas, and several magic carpets. The lift system is always listed in the top ten in the world in polls taken by magazines and online websites.

Mammoth Mountain features everything from high speed to fixed grip lifts.

Chair 22 and 23 are fixed grips, but only take a couple more minutes, allowing your body to recover from the extreme steeps you just tackled.

During Holidays beware… ride early to avoid the crowds and ride lifts 23 and 14 to avoid the biggest nightmares.

The Runs
Everything from first-time beginners runs, to miles of groomers for intermediates to advanced and expert terrain. Mammoth offers it all on a daily basis. When a storm rolls in and the top shuts down you still have access to the steeps off chair 22. No need to be skiing without the aid of trees for viability.

Beginners should go to Main Lodge or Canyon Lodge; these are the best places to learn. Little Eagle can also get you up on your first day with 2 pomas and two magic carpets.

Intermediate
Dave MC Coy invented modern grooming standards right here at Mammoth Mountain. Today Mammoth’s fleet of over 30 Snow Grooming machines is one of the largest to run on a nightly basis during the long 7-month season. The fleet goes out and grooms around 800-1000 acres of snow on a nightly basis. On weekends that adds up to around 110 runs during the peak of the season.

Advanced
As you progress from intermediate groomed runs, you can move to the advanced runs on chairs 3 and 5 and then on up to the cornice run off the top of Mammoth Mountain. Cornice and then Scotties are the runs advanced skiers and riders want to master first. Dave’s is also a good choice.

Experts
Freeskiing and boarding, cliff hucking, powder, trees, chutes, cliff bands. It’s all here for the expert skier and riders. Chairs 9, 14, 22, 23, 25, and Gondola 2 are your playground featuring over 2000 acres of sick terrain.

There is so much to discover on Mammoth Mountain. Take a look through our website for images, video adventures, weather, and condition/recreation blogs.

We will see you out on Mammoth Mountain.

Snowman out…

Mammoth Mountain Ski Area Stats

Base Elevation 7,953 ft
Summit Elevation 11,053 ft
Vertical Rise 3,100 ft
Skiable Acres 3,500+
Number of Named Trails 150
Number of Lifts 25 (includes 9 express quads, 2 express six-packs, 2 gondolas)
Snowmaking 46 trails
Parks 8 parks with 100+ jibs and 50+ jumps; 3 halfpipes
Average Snowfall per Year 400 inches
Season Length Nov–June
Terrain
15% expert
20% advanced
40% intermediate
25% beginner

Trail Map for the Mammoth Mountain Ski Area
Looking out to the Face of 5 and Beyond - Photo David Ebben