California Skiing Areas and Resorts

Some of the most popular and best skiing areas in California are the following:

Mammoth Mountain Ski Area:

Mammoth

East Central California, off the Highway 395, along the eastern edge of California's Sierra Nevada range - 307 miles north of Los Angeles; approximately 290 miles east of San Francisco and Sacramento.

Season: November to June
Skiable Acres: over 3,500
Number of Runs: 156
Number of Lifts: 28

Terrain:
Beginner: 25%
Intermediate: 40%
Advanced: 20%
Expert: 15%
Vertical Rise: 3,100 feet

June Mountain

June Mountain is located about 20 miles north of Mammoth Lakes; 155 miles south of Los Vegas.

Season: December through April
Vertical Rise: 2,590 feet
Skiable Acres: over 500
Number of Runs: 35 named trails
Number of Lifts: 7 - 2 Quads, 4 Doubles, 1 carpet
Longest Run: 2 miles

Terrain:
Beginner: 35%
Intermediate: 45%
Advanced: 20%

You will find plenty of lodging opportunities in the Mammoth Lakes/June Lake area. For a nice budget choice, check out the Boulder Lodge, one mile east of June Mountain overlooking June Lake. Boulder Lodge has an indoor swimming pool, hot tub and sauna, plus game room. Call for information at 760-648-7533.

Lake Tahoe Ski Area:

The Lake Tahoe area has some of the finest ski resorts in California, including:

• Sugar Bowl
• Donner Ski Ranch
• Squaw Valley
• Homewood Mountain Resort
• Heavenly
• Kirkwood

For more information on ski resorts in the Lake Tahoe area, see our inside page on Lake Tahoe Ski Resorts.

Big Bear/Southern California Skiing:

Bear Mountain

Bear Mountain is located in Big Bear, which is situated in the San Bernardino Mountains, less than a 2-1/2 hour drive from either Los Angeles or San Diego. Southern California’s only Superpipe, stretching nearly 600 feet long, 77 feet wide and 18 feet deep.

Vertical Drop: 1,665 feet
Skiable Acres: 750
Number of Lifts: 12
Longest Run: 1.5 miles

Terrain:
First-Time Beginner: 15%
Low Intermediate: 15%
Intermediate: 40%
Advanced: 30%

Mt. Baldy

Located east of Los Angeles and West of San Bernardino. Mt. Baldy is the largest and steepest ski resort in Southern California, only 45 miles from Los Angeles.

Number of Runs: 26 (spanning 3 mountains)
Skiable Acres: 800
Vertical Drop: 2,100

Mountain High

Located an hour from Los Angeles and Orange County, with no mountain driving, Mountain High is home to three different resorts:

West Resort: The most youthful of the three areas with a large number of technical trails, for freestylers. Open 7 nights a week, with many on-hill contests and live performances.

East Resort: With cruising trails more 1.5 miles long, moguls and views of the Mojave Desert. For traditional skiers and snowboarders.

North Resort: Formerly Ski Sunrise; caters to families and introductory skiers, with 70 acres of tubing and beginner terrain. Across from the West Resort; free shuttles are available.

Season: Early November through late April
Skiable Terrain: 290 acres
Vertical Rise: 1,600 feet
Number of Trails: 60
Number of Lifts: 16

Terrain:
Beginner: 22%
Intermediate: 41%
Advanced: 37%

Mount Shasta Ski Area:

Mt. Shasta Ski Park

Great for those learning to ski with shallow, gradient runs on the Marmot Ridge, which encompasses 6 shallow, wide open, tree-lined, wind-protected trails, making it a superb place to learn. Accessed by its own 3,500-ft. long triple chairlift.

Mt. Shasta Ski Park is just 65 miles north of Redding, 245 miles north of Sacramento, and 295 miles north of San Francisco.

Skiable Acres: 425
Vertical: 1,390
Number of Runs: 32 trails
Number of Lifts: 4

Terrain:
Beginner: 20%
Intermediate: 55%
Advanced: 25%

Night Skiing on 14 trails and 3 lifts

Lodging in the Mount Shasta area can be found in McCloud, Mt. Shasta City and nearby Weed.

Two fairly inexpensive lodging options are the McCloud Century House, an historic inn located at the base of Mt. Shasta and featured on HGTV's "If Walls Could Talk", and Stoney Brook Inn, which comes with an outdoor hot tub and full breakfast included, and only 15 minutes to Mt. Shasta Ski Park.

Synonyms: CA is synonymous with California.

Californian, californias, californi, califormia, californa, californina, calofornia, clifornia, callifornia, californis, caliornia, califorinia, calfornia, califirnia, and calafornia are typos for "California." Kiing, ksiing, siing, siking, skiing, sking, skinig, skiig, skiign and skiin are typos for "skiing."