"Good skiing but Unreal hiking and... " a Mammoth Lakes Travel Page by mtncorg

Mammoth Lakes is the busiest tourist center in the Eastern Sierra. It is so for very good reasons: world class skiing, superb alpine scenery, superb outdoor opportunities - bike, hike, climb, horsecamp, backpack, fly fish, or just sit in some of the best hot springs around.

The area bustles and booms with tourism. Ski season is big. People from the San Francisco Bay area gravitate towards the ski areas around Lake Tahoe, further north - Heavenly Mountain, Squaw Valley - but here you have SoCal on the slopes. Los Angelenos on the move. It is nearly a 6 hour drive from LA, but many do it for a weekend of skiing. The mountain is a dormant volcano ringed with ski lifts - not unlike Mt Bachelor in Oregon.

For me, the area is best in September - after the kids are back in school. Many people think the mountains close down after Labor Day, but that is when they come into their own. Fewer people; the air can become more settled; the nights do become crisper and a little longer, so bring along a good friend to share the beauty with.

I am a hiker, so most of my pages will be devoted to dayhikes you can do in the immediate area. there are several campgrounds in the area and many hotels, motels, bed&breakfasts, fastfood stops, bakeries, not-so-fast food stops, grocery stores, gas stations, services of all kind here in Mammoth Lakes - even a brewpub.