Snow Summit is a

ski resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area–a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North Am ...

that was established in 1952 and is in the

San Bernardino Mountains The San Bernardino Mountains are a high and rugged mountain range in Southern California in the United States. Situated north and northeast of San Bernardino and spanning two California counties, the range tops out at at San Gorgonio Mountain ...

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. It is located by

Big Bear Lake Big Bear Lake is a reservoir in the Western United States, western United States, located in the San Bernardino Mountains in San Bernardino County, California, San Bernardino County, California. It is a snow and rain-fed lake, having no other m ...

along with its sister resort Bear Mountain; these two resorts which operate under the same management are collectively known as Big Bear Mountain Resorts (BBMR), alongside the new addition of Running Springs’ Snow Valley. Snow Summit is one of the larger ski areas in Southern California, and is considered to be one of the most popular ski and snowboard destinations for patrons from around the Los Angeles area. Snow Summit is a mid-sized resort, with a topographic vertical drop, and of skiable terrain, partially covered by snowmaking. In 2014,

Mammoth Mountain Ski Area Mammoth Mountain Ski Area is a ski resort in eastern California, located on the east side of the Sierra Nevada, Sierra Nevada mountain range within the Inyo National Forest. The resort is located in the town of Mammoth Lakes, California. The res ...

(owned by

Starwood Capital Group Starwood Capital Group is an investment firm headquartered in Miami Beach, Florida. It is managed by Barry Sternlicht. It was co-founded by Sternlicht and Robert Faith in 1991. In 1993, Faith left Starwood to found Greystar Real Estate Partn ...

at that time under the entity Mammoth Resorts) purchased Bear Mountain and Snow Summit for $38 million. In 2017, Mammoth Resorts, which also included June Mountain, announced its sale by Starwood to a partnership of Aspen Skiing Company and KSL Capital Partners, known as Alterra Mountain Company.

Big Bear Mountain Resort

For decades, Snow Summit and Goldmine Mountain operated independently of one another, less than two miles apart. In 1988, S.K.I., a major ski area operator, bought Goldmine, changed its name to Bear Mountain, and invested millions of dollars in improvements that enhanced its competitive position against Snow Summit. In 2002, Snow Summit purchased Bear Mountain, and the two became one company. In January 2023, Big Bear Mountain Resort purchased Snow Valley. Snow Summit, Snow Valley, and Bear Mountain are marketed as areas constituent to Big Bear Mountain Resorts. A lift ticket from either area is honored at the others, and a free bus service between Snow Summit and Bear Mountain shuttles patrons back and forth between the two for that purpose. Since 2023, there have been rumors of a connection between Snow Summit and Bear Mountain. A plan has been submitted to the

U.S. Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands covering of land. The major divisions of the agency are the Chief's ...

, but approval won’t be announced until Spring 2025 according to insider reports.

Snowmaking

Snow Summit's extensive, multimillion-dollar snowmaking system draws water from

to cover all of the resort's marked terrain with skiable artificial snow — if ambient temperature and humidity are amenable — throughout its winter operating season .

Snow Summit trails

References

External links

Official Snow Summit website
{{California Ski areas navbox Alterra Mountain Company Ski areas and resorts in California San Bernardino Mountains San Bernardino National Forest Sports venues in San Bernardino County, California Companies based in San Bernardino County, California 1952 establishments in California