Mammoth Backcountry (Sherwin & Blue Diamonds)
Mammoth Lakes · near Mammoth Lakes · Eastern Sierra
Nordic & Snowshoe
At a glance
- Best season
- Dec–May; snow-sure deep snowpack (~8,000–9,500 ft)
What is here
- Activities
- backcountry · snowshoe
- Setting
- forest
- Amenities
- Deep eastern-Sierra powder · Blue-diamond forest tours · Sherwin Bowls objectives · Rentals in town
- Best for
- Backcountry touring in deep snow
- Features
- Famous Mammoth powder · Marked forest tours · Big Sherwin Bowls · Long touring season
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Sherwin Bowls are avalanche terrain · High elevation & winter navigation · Cold, wind, storms · Avalanche kit & forecast for steeper terrain
- Good for a first timer
- No
Guides, rentals and operators
- Rentals
- Yes
Nordic & Snowshoe detail
- Venue
- backcountry
- Ability
- advanced
- Snow
- 5
- Trail notes
- Snow-sure eastern-Sierra backcountry right out of Mammoth — blue-diamond-marked forest tours and the big Sherwin Bowls for skiers and snowshoers, in famously deep powder
- Terrain note
- ~8,000–9,500 ft; marked routes & open bowls; very deep reliable snow
- Intl tip
- Superb backcountry Nordic and snowshoe terrain right at the edge of Mammoth, amid California's deepest snow. Gentle blue-diamond-marked forest tours around the Lakes Basin and Shady Rest suit intermediates and snowshoers; the sweeping Sherwin Bowls above town draw experienced ski tourers to snow-sure powder, with a season often into May. But the Sherwin Bowls are genuine avalanche terrain (carry avalanche gear/training, check the forecast, go with capable partners); even marked tours need warm layers and storm awareness. Rentals and guides in town.
The guide
Mammoth Lakes sits amid some of the deepest, most reliable snow in California, and beyond the groomed tracks it offers superb b…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Mammoth Backcountry (Sherwin & Blue Diamonds) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.6, -118.98