Mammoth braces for more snow in the aftermath of big crowds, long waits at lifts

More snow is in the forecast again for Mammoth Lakes, in the wake of a holiday crush where some lift line waits reportedly stretched to 90 minutes. The new system was expected to roll in Wednesday afternoon and linger through the weekend.

Visitors reported 60- to 90-minute waits at some of the busiest runs on Saturday, as the resort faced delays in digging out from last week’s string of blizzards.

Faced with huge holiday weekend delays, some skiers simply gave up, or fled to June Mountain 20 minutes north of Mammoth, where lines were reported to be more manageable.

By Sunday, waits had dropped to more typical holiday levels.

“The lines were painful, but the fresh powder made it worthwhile,” said Teresa Butier, who was visiting from Los Angeles for the weekend.

Unlike some resorts, Mammoth Mountain does not cap daily ticket sales, and operators were citing delays in digging out snowed-under lifts. A storm system that ended Friday left upward of 18 feet of fresh snow in upper parts of the mountain.

In a statement Tuesday, the resort said:

“The combination of a multiple back-to-back storms created a lot of work to get lifts running safely. We had several delayed lift openings on Saturday as crews worked to remove a great deal of accumulated snow and ice.”

One gauge of how busy the mountain town was over the holiday weekend: Water management officials reported outflows at 4 million gallons a day, higher than during the busy Christmas holidays.

Meanwhile, more snow was in the forecast. The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory, with snow expected to begin Wednesday afternoon. The heaviest snowfall is expected between 7 p.m. Wednesday and 7 a.m. Thursday, with accumulations to 16 inches in upper elevations, and 3 to 8 inches below 8,000 feet.

Snow was predicted off and on through the weekend and into the middle of next week. Base depths ranged from 10 feet at the lodges, to more than 20 feet higher up the mountain.

For road reports, call (800) 427-7623.

travel@latimes.com

Twitter: @LATimestravel

ALSO

What’s new at ski resorts across the West

You won’t recognize Northstar at Lake Tahoe