The Mammoth Mountain Sign at 11,053 Feet

There have been several signs over the years at the top of Mammoth Mountain to mark the 11,053-foot peak.

Many people take the scenic ride up to see the views and get their pictures taken by the iconic large Sign.

The Sign that stood for the last 20 years was 18 1/2 feet tall. The new Sign they installed is now 24 feet tall and was built from the trunk of a giant pine tree felled by an avalanche on Mammoth Mountain.

The location where the Sign is located gets a ton of snow loading, and the Sign is constantly getting buried during storm cycles. Funny, when the storms break, and the Sign is buried just 100 yards down the back side, you will find the bare ground.

Because of this wind build-up, Snowcats must come into this area daily to groom, and when the Sign gets buried, they dig it out. In some seasons, this can happen dozens of times, depending on the storm cycles Mammoth Mountain gets.

It is incredible how much snow can pile up from wind loading. If you get 3-4 feet at Main Lodge, the Sign could end up loaded with 10 feet or more. During the winter of 2019, the current Sign, which had been in place since 1998, finally turned over its post.

The Old Sign had rotted out at the bottom, and when a snowcat tagged it, the Sign came down. We have been informed that the new signpost is made from Western White Wood and will be attached to a steel beam, which has been added to keep it more secure. The new Sign should last us another 20 years.