Epic Travel → North America → The West Coast → Northern California → Eastern Sierras → Mammoth Lakes Area → Tamarack Cross Country Skiing

Location: Mammoth Lakes Area, Eastern Sierras, California

Time Required: 2 hours – all day

Distance: various trails

Elevation Gain: various

Red Tape/Notes: View the trail map, trail status, and current conditions here. As of the 2018/2019 winter season, a day pass for the cross country trails was $32 for adults, and a ski package rental was $29.

What’s Nearby?: Upper Owens River, Crowley Lake Columns, Convict Lake, McGee Pass Trail

There may be something wrong with us, but we’ve just about decided that we prefer cross-country skiing to downhill. It could have something to do with the fact that we prefer peaceful solitude, perfectly untouched blankets of snow, and soft flexible shoes to crowds of people, waiting in queues, artificially groomed everything, and the world’s most uncomfortable shoes (don’t even try the “snowboarding shoes are more comfortable” argument…that may be true, but the awkward dragging of your board like a lifeless third limb is less than spectacular). Regardless, Tamarack Cross Country Ski Center provides a great alternative winter destination for anyone who’s willing to put slightly more effort in for a great reward. With miles of groomed trails, you can glide through a winter wonderland with views of frozen lakes and picturesque mountains; and when you get to the part where gravity takes you home, it feels so much more satisfying than if you’d taken a chairlift up.

Epic Travel → North America → The West Coast → Northern California → Eastern Sierras → Mammoth Lakes Area → Tamarack Cross Country Skiing