Bitten by the June Bug

“Hakuna Matata. What a wonderful phrase!” came the chorus from the back seat as we made the turn from California 14 onto U.S. 395--the ribbon of road that stretches along the eastern flank of the Sierra Nevada. To an accompaniment of Disney ditties, my 11-year-old son, Dylan, my 8-year-old daughter, Courtney, and I were headed north for a holiday weekend of skiing and other forms of outdoor entertainment.

The long Presidents’ Day weekend was dawning clear and crisp over the Panamint Range to the east, and, although some clouds coasted across the sky, there were no dark spots on our weekend horizon.

The June Lake-Mammoth Lakes region, 300 road miles north of Los Angeles, is a favorite of our family, as it is for many Southern Californians. Both children took their first skiing lessons, at ages 4 and 5, at the Woollywood Mammoth ski school. But when it comes to family skiing, especially on a weekend, and even more so on a holiday weekend, the kids and I head for Mammoth’s sister summit--June Mountain, which lies just a bit farther north. For years, June Mountain has been best known as the local residents’ ski area. “Sleepy” and “rustic” have been the words most often used to describe what is, in reality, a recreational wonderland. Some of the better Sierra skiers can be found sweeping over the 35 runs on its varied terrain.

On this trip, as on most of our journeys to the Eastern Sierra, a 6 a.m. departure put us, after 90 minutes on the road, in the old railroad town of Mojave for a hearty breakfast at Denny’s. On this morning, the cold desert air had left patches of ice in the parking lot, much to the delight of the youngsters. “Cool, Dad,” said Courtney.

Even with a pair of “stretch-your-legs” stops, we arrived at Mammoth Lakes in time for a lunch of fast-food burgers. We had chosen to spend our nights at Mammoth Lakes because of the wider range of places to stay and to eat. June Mountain is only about 20 minutes away.

Mammoth Reservation Bureau and its gregarious owner, Steve Black, always seem able to find visitors a place to stay, even on holiday weekends. Steve and his team make each person who walks through the door welcome, and they appear unharried, quickly locating our reservation, even when the phones are ringing off the hook.

In a matter of minutes we were unlocking the door of our home for the weekend--a one-bedroom condo with a loft for the kids and a big living room, a fireplace and a television set to which a Nintendo game could be attached. With snow covering much of the first level of the building, the second-floor deck was perfect for launching snowball bombs on unsuspecting victims below, especially Dad with a last load of suitcases.

Because we planned to spend part of our last day of the four-day trip at Mammoth Mountain checking out its new snowshoeing program, we decided to rent the kids’ skis there rather than at June Mountain. This was purely a matter of convenience, but it allowed the youngsters a chance to unpack their sleds for some afternoon sliding on the wooded hills near the Mammoth parking lot. It also gave us a chance to adjust to the 8,000-foot elevation.

An early dinner followed--pasta and garlic bread cooked on the condo stove--and off to bed.

The next morning, the rising sun reflected off the frost on the windows as we strapped the skis to the top of the car, packed a lunch and headed up the road to June Mountain. Much to our delight, there was ample room in the large parking lot. Less thrilling was the holiday line that had formed for the lift ride to the ski area. June Mountain is unusual in that you have to ride a single slow-moving chairlift from near the parking lot to the lodge. Usually it’s not a major problem, but on this holiday weekend, the wait was at least half an hour. Another potential contributor to the long lines may be this year’s discounted season passes, which have been slashed to just $250, a true bargain. (Daily lift tickets this year range from $22 to $42.) But once you get to the top, 500 acres of skiable terrain unfold before you, and the wait for a lift usually is only a few seconds.

While Mammoth Mountain may have 18,000 skiers a day, June tops out at closer to 1,800, which means open slopes, few waits and lots of fun. Because this was our first ski trip of the year, the kids signed up for a half-day of lessons to polish their rusty beginner-to-intermediate skills. June Mountain boasts about its family-oriented program, and the lessons for young skiers more than justify its claims. The best approach is to have the kids take morning lessons; then you can spend the afternoon trying to keep up with them. Silverado is our favorite beginner run--wide and well groomed, just steep enough to get young skiers excited without scaring them. Dylan and some new pals from ski school immediately managed to get themselves temporarily lost when they went to explore some unfamiliar intermediate runs. But you can’t really get lost on June Mountain’s widely accessible terrain, so it was no big deal. Meanwhile, the daring daughter was running the kid-size race course.

Last season, June imported two new activities from its counterparts in the East. The first addition is the Back Country Adventure Zone. Popular in Europe, randonnee skiing has been introduced at June Mountain. This form of the sport takes more adventurous skiers off groomed slopes and into the edge of the back country, using European techniques.

The two-day course, led by ski mountaineering expert S.P. Parker, uses the lifts to reach the top of the mountain for lessons in back-country skiing techniques, followed by a daylong tour off the back side of June Mountain.

The second import is a Tube Park ride that has proved popular in many areas. Kids who may not want to ski clearly enjoy it. Whether it will be open this year depends on how much snow settles on the lower slopes.

All that fun builds an appetite. At the base of Chair 7, June has opened a new mid-mountain eatery called Stewpot Slim’s (formerly Hudson Haus) to feed a lunch crowd that wants to stay near the higher terrain. By closing time, however, we were ready for a sit-down chow-down, heading back down the road to Mammoth to Roberto’s Mexican Restaurant, which was well worth the 20-minute wait. Reasonably priced, Roberto’s serves excellent food and drink in large portions.

Our last day of the long weekend saw us checking out Mammoth Mountain’s new snowshoe program. But first came what has become a traditional breakfast at what we firmly believe is the best breakfast spot in the Eastern Sierra. With a frame-house exterior and wooden booths inside, the Stove has the comfortable atmosphere of a neighborhood cafe. A breakfast for two easily feeds three, with fluffy pancakes, large strips of bacon, eggs and all the trimmings. This is food to fuel a day of skiing, and the line outside the restaurant testifies to its popularity.

We headed up to Mammoth Mountain for a quick side trip to the dog-sledding operation so the kids could visit the Siberian huskies. The daily dog-sled rides are great for couples who want to snuggle under the sled blankets and for families with smaller children. The ride includes great views of the famed Minarets, and the dogs are irresistible.

Then it was a stroll to the main lodge to rent snowshoes. Staff member Joani Saari showed us how to attach our boots to the new, lightweight snowshoes. Mammoth has established a half-dozen snowshoe trails, and the program offers an excellent diversion from skiing as you hike easily over the untracked snow past fresh-smelling pines.

In the end, the long weekend was too short. But the memories will linger. As Dylan put it, “Can we come back to this winter wonderland again soon?” You bet.

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Budget for Three

Gas: $60.00

Breakfast in Mojave: 21.50

Lunch, Mammoth: $12.00Condo rental: 324.06

Groceries: 32.10

Ski rental for kids: 88.00

Ski school for kids: 68.00

Lift tickets, two-day package: 140.00

Tube Park for two: 20.00

Lunch, June Mountain: 26.00

Dinner, Roberto’s: 32.77

Breakfast, the Stove: 23.84

Snowshoe rentals: 30.00

FINAL TAB: $878.27

June Mountain, tel. (888) 586-3686, . Mammoth Reservation Bureau, tel. (800) 462-5571.