With Big Bear resorts set to start, check out our list of California ski openings

Nov. 12, 2015 8:15 AM PT

The hills are alive -- with skiers and snow boarders, that is. More resorts are now open across California, courtesy of early storms and cold weather.

Bear Mountain and Snow Summit, two hours from downtown Los Angeles, are set to open Friday, weeks earlier than expected.

Bear Mountain will be open top-to-bottom, with chairs 9 and 7 operating. At Snow Summit, the Miracle Mile and Chair 4 beginner area will be ready to go.

Opening-day tickets are only $35, and Bear/Summit season passes are still available.

It’s been a year since Mammoth Resorts’ acquisition of the two sister resorts near San Bernardino. Changes at Bear Mountain and Snow Summit include new restaurants, a snow tube park, improved snow-making and a new learning center.

Most notable, probably: A new restaurant at Summit will feature an open-pit rotisserie barbecue, with plans to cook up a whole pig every day. It is situated at the top of lifts 2, 3 and 9. Or just follow the well-scented smoke.

Now in its second year, the Cali4nia Pass ($799) provides season-long access to Bear Mountain, Snow Summit, Mammoth Mountain and June Mountain. Bear and Summit-only passes ($599 for adults) are also available.

Further north, Alpine Meadows opens today, and Squaw Valley opens Saturday, joining many of the resorts that have opened earlier than usual.

A partial list of California ski resort openings:

Alpine Meadows Resort – Opening Thursday (Nov. 12)

Bear Mountain – Opening Friday (Nov. 13)

Boreal Mountain Resort – Open

Diamond Peak – Dec. 10

Homewood – Dec. 11

Mammoth – Open

Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe – Open

Mountain High – Open

Northstar California – Opening Saturday (Nov. 14)

Snow Summit – Opening Friday (Nov. 13)

Squaw Valley – Opening Saturday (Nov. 14)

Sugar Bowl Resort – TBD

Tahoe Donner – Opening Dec. 11

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Chris Erskine

Chris Erskine is a nationally known humor columnist and editor who retired from the Los Angeles Times in 2020. Previously he wrote for the Sports, Travel and Saturday sections and edited with the paper’s features staff. As an editor, he has been a part of two Pulitzer Prize-winning teams at The Times (for his graphics work on the Northridge quake and the North Hollywood bank robbery). He is best known to readers for his weekly humor pieces on life in suburban Los Angeles. His latest book, “Daditude,” released in 2018, is a collection of his favorite Times columns on fatherhood. He has written two other books, “Man of the House” and “Surviving Suburbia,” which reached the Los Angeles Times bestseller list. The Chicago native has also worked for papers in New Orleans and Miami.

With Big Bear resorts set to start, check out our list of California ski openings

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