Industry News
You could single handily say that California just had the most historic winter season ever on record for much of the high terrain, and this even includes parts of southern California, which is saying a lot! This historic snowfall has caused increased pressure and demands on Caltrans (California Department of Transportation) to do their job and meet all areas needing attention and care.
Well, there is one particular area nestled in the San Gabriel Mountains of the Los Angeles National Forest of Southern California that has been struggling with all the snowfall this year. This ski area is known as Mt. Waterman. This area is located 32 miles due north up the Angeles Crest Highway (CA HWY 2).
This never-ending armada of winter storms impacting much of the high terrain of California has caused Caltrans to focus much if not all of its efforts on the Cajon and Tejon Pass, virtually ignoring the southern parts of the state. The portion of CA HWY 2 that you take to get to Mt. Waterman Ski Area is still closed until further notice because of landslides and road damage making it inaccessible. Check out these mind-blowing scenes taken on Angeles Crest Highway!
Here is the latest report from Mt. Waterman Ski Area:
Waterman Report 3/24/2023
The latest storms have brought 3-4 feet of new snow making the conditions amazing unfortunately we can not open until we have a road to get there. Cal Trans is doing everything they can to get our roads repaired, cleared and safe and we thank them for their hard work. Mother Nature has brought us our snow now we just have to wait. We will keep updating as the reports come in.
– MW Family”
Here are some fun tidbits about this hidden gem in the Southern California Mountains. This family-run ski lift started by Lynn Newcomb Sr. and his sons, Ren and Lynn Jr has been running things since 1938 with the very first rope tow to start things out. Then three years later, in 1941, the first chair lift was fully operational. Today it has three chairs in operation. Mt. Waterman tops out at 8,030 ft offering a respectable 1,030 ft of vertical drop. There are 150 acres of terrain to explore. The best part of all this is that no snow is artificially produced at this ski area. It’s all derived from Mother Nature!
As we move more into the peak spring months and the temperatures start to gradually build, hopefully, these storms lessen, giving the terrain and Caltrans the time to recover and get CA HWY 2 back in working condition so that local communities can peacefully enjoy this unique and special ski area in Southern Cali.
