Mammoth Mountain - California Playground
by Rebecca Herranen
Title
Mammoth Mountain - California Playground
Artist
Rebecca Herranen
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
This is where I grew up. Mammoth Mountain towered over the tiny little town of Mammoth Lakes in California. Not much looks the same anymore, not even the mountain. When I was a kid there was always snow on that mountain, even late summer. I used to wonder how old that snow must have been. Today the mountain has been so carved up for new trails, the snow is gone now.
We used to get to go skiing for free every Friday for PE. In fact all local kids had free passes all season long.
Very few places I knew are still there. Schat's Bakery is still there. I worked there when they would bring fresh pastries up from Bishop before 6 AM every morning. Kittredge's Sporting Goods, it's still there. I went to school with their son. The Stove, it's been moved out on to Old Mammoth Road, but still a busy place every morning. The Stove is was the location for Timo and my first dates.
Today, I hardly recognize it. Tourists don't just arrive to ski and snowboard in the winter any more. Today, they mountain is busy all year long. There are the winter sports and then there is mountain biking the rest of the year. Chair lifts that use to only carry skiers and snowboarders, not also haul mountain bikes to the very top of Mammoth Mountain.
Then there are the actual Mammoth Lakes for the best camping and fishing. Lots of memories there with our own kids.
On this trip to Mammoth, we were there to say goodbye to Timo's mom. The top of Mammoth Mountain is a special place at 11,200 feet, you can see forever.
To get away from busy tourist congestion, we took a drive down Mammoth Creek Rd. The view back toward the mountain was beautiful.
Do you have memories of Mammoth Lakes and it's iconic mountain?
Uploaded
September 10th, 2021
Embed
Share
