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Mammoth Snowmobile Adventures
Category: Hotels & Travel Ski Resorts Ski Resorts [Edit]
1 Minaret RdMammoth Lakes, CA 93546
(760) 934-9645
6 reviews for Mammoth Snowmobile Adventures
6 reviews in English
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Review from N. Danny S.
San Gabriel, CA
3/9/2010 8 photos
BEST experience ever!!
My girlfriend took me here for my birthday. This was my first time snowmobiling, she had gone before in the past in Colorado. We both had a great time. We each got a single sled and did the 1.5hr tour.
The staff was very friendly and helpful. Our guide, Jon, was great always cracking jokes and making sure everyone had a great time. The staff was superb, 110% effort of their part, zero complaints on my end. Its also cool that they have their own private parking lot, so it doesn't matter how packed the mountain is, just go right in to the snowmobile parking area.
Here is a brief rundown of the series of events you can expect. We meet up at the office, and get fitted for helmets. We go out to the parking area, and have an instructional meeting about the usage of the sled. Then off you go! You will first ride about 30mins on the groomed road through the trees. We then arrived at this very large untouched field, I mean 2ft of FRESH pow, not a single track in it. He let us loose to drive as fast and as freely as we want for 15-20mins. Then he took us back off the groomed road through the trees and back country. Then back to the office. The pace was perfect. Not too fast in the beginning so you can get used to the sled, but not too slow where it got boring. The guide would speed up and you would have to work to keep up so it kept things fun and exciting.
My recommendations:
1. Bring a camera!! Or several, if everyone has one, better.
2. Wear your snow gear if you have them, pants, jacket, gloves, etc. Soft snowboard boots are good, hard ski boots are not.
3. If its sunny out wear your goggles or sunglasses, it will be bright at times.
4. Get a single sled for the best experience, and sit on it like a sport bike, not like a harley. Tuck your feet towards the back for maximum feel and control, plus not bumping your knees with the controls. Unfortunately, I didn't figure this part out until the trip was almost over.
5. If its your first time, take the 1.5 tour, the 3hr tour might be too long and overwhelming for first timers.
Don't forget to get the hot chocolate at the end, its super tasty!! -
Review from Fritz d.
Cypress, CA
2/8/2012 1 Check-in Here
the snowmobile trailer is behind the Yodler, near the Main lodge.
i must say this was the FUNNEST thing we did at mammoth.
i reserved two doubles -- for the hubby, me, and two kiddos. i figured my parents were too old to ride. my 71YO father INSISTED on joining us at the very last minute, and the staff was super accommodating. since it was friday and the price for a single was the same as a double, i forced my mother to come along for the ride.
it was the first snowmobiling experience for 5 out of 6 of us. it was SOOOOOO fun and worth every penny. (total came to $408)
basically your group rides to an area called crater flats (i think), where you can go crazy and drive around like maniacs. then you ride back to base. i lost all track of time during this experience, but i would guess about 45 minutes to get to crater flats, maybe 15-20 minutes of free play, and 25 minutes to get back??
thanks to June Y.'s review, i made sure to be next-to-last, and the hubbs was the caboose. we fell back, caught up, and had a great time.
my only complaint would be that our guide didn't allot enough time for pictures. he told us he'd let us know when to take them, but that basically meant he would take A PHOTO with our camera for us. i wanted to have a shot with just the kids, just me and my husband, the girls in one group, the boys in another, grandparents with the grandkids.... (you get the picture). i wanted pictures of every combination possible. i would have gladly used our "own time" at crater flats and done this myself, had i known that was the time to do it. :(
if you're like me and want to go camera crazy, my advice would be to get all your pictures taken early. (but don't miss out on the free play either!) -
Review from Veronica H.
Fremont, CA
2/19/2008
What Sylvia H. said, but here's my review without making too much repeats of what she already mentioned.
1. I highly recommend making a reservation to hold your spot/s beforehand. They do get booked up and on the day we went, there were people on the "waiting list" who wanted to ride.
2. Parking/Transportation - parking is difficult here, but if you're strictly here for snowmobiling, you can park in the Mammoth Village Lodge ...just tell the employee at the gate...if you already have reservations, check in w/your reservation name - OR you can just take the Mammoth Village bus up if you're staying at a nearby hotel/lodge...red line it back
3. Gear - you can rent gear here ($4 a piece for gloves, pants, etc), but if you already have boarding/ski gear...that's good enough ....fyi - no ski boots allowed, but boarding boots are fine - helmets included w/cost of snowmobiling
4. If it's your first time, definately go w/the single snowmobile to get the full experience (i'm glad I did). There's nothing like having the power and freedom of riding a snowmobile in your own hands.
5. Guided tour was great. They are professional and ensure your safety. Our guide was friendly and helpful when giving the orientation. She went at a perfect pace allowing you to go at your own pace as well. She made sure to check up on the group every once in awhile to make sure that everybody was okay and was able to keep up w/the group. Best part was the "free ride" time. Our guide brought us out to an open area, about half hr into the ride, and just let us ride anywhere within the huge boundaries she set for us, take pictures, and take in the scenery...it was beautiful!
6. Trails are very well groomed and paths are clearly marked for the most part.
7. Awesome experience....would definately do it again! I need to get myself one of them snowmobiles now! -
Review from June Y.
1/31/2010 3 photos
O.M.G.
I've never driven a snowmobile before. Now I understand why people buy bikes and quads.
I took the $90 ride. I honestly think they should charge more. The 1.5 hours were plenty of really experience what snowmobiling was. The guide took us through the snowmobile trail through the woods and hills: uphill, downhill, sharp turns and corners. A part of the tour was having some free time to really try the snowmobiling in an open area. Riding through 3-feet deep snow, plowing across the tracks was something I'll never forget. We also saw some wild life inside the huge crater the guide took us to.
The average speed of the snowmobile, in a single file, following the guide, was about 35 mph. The guide would seldom speed up to 40 and 45. In the open field, I got up to 53mph.
SOOOOO MUCH FUN
I'd imagine this is like riding a jet ski or a wave runner. I'm gonna have to try those out as well soon.
Highly recommended. It's a great way to spend 1.5 hours not skiing or snowboarding. It's also a great way to really see the mountains.
Advices:
1. DRIVE the snowmobile and don't get on as a passenger. It's much more interesting if you drive it.
2. Lower your visor on your helmet. Because the snowmobile in front of you will spit out small chunks of snow behind it, you WILL get smacked with a few snow/ice chunks. I got hit a few times. I had my visor up, however, to feel the wind on my face. :0)
3. Be the last person in the line. It allows you to fall back a bit and catch up. The group would travel at 35mph and I would fall back so I can accelerate to 45 to catch up. hahaListed in: Date Night Ideas!
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Review from Sylvia H.
Fremont, CA
2/19/2008
Snowmobiling was an amazing experience. It was my first time going so I wasn't sure what to expect (snowmobiling actually kind of felt like jetskiing.) I didn't realize how much fun it could be! I was a little hesitant that we were required to go with a guide though because I thought it would be slow and boring but I was completely wrong! Even though we had to ride in a long trail of 9 snowmobiles, I was still able to hit 40mph or more! Every so often we would slow down though but it's understandable since we were going with a large group. Our guide made sure every 10 mins that everyone was doing ok and seeing if anyone needed to be rearranged in line in case the snowmobile in front was going too slow for you...this was the only downfall that you're somewhat restricted in how fast you go through the trails. BUT, our guide made up for the slowness! She gave us "free time" to test the power of the snowmobile in the middle of our tour. She took us to open terrain where we were able to freely ride around. I was even able to hit up to 50-60mph. You should try speeding up when there's bumps and hills because it'll really make you jump off your seat :) Or in my bf's case, he was going so fast over the hills that his snowmobile actually caught some air time!
The trails you're taken on are pretty cool too....you get the experience of riding in the woods type of feel. The views are spectacular too...very breathtaking when you're at the top of the mtn! The whole experience was really great. If this is your first time, I would say to do the singles! I'm glad I was driving the entire time. If I were to go again, I'd still do singles...I don't wanna share my drive time with anyone else! It's too much fun :P Since I'm somewhat familiar with snowmobiling, I wouldn't mind returning here and definitely doing the self-guided tour now. (BTW, you can't do the self-guided tour here unless you've been on their guided tour at least once..they want you to be familiar with the trails before you head out on your own). The people are very friendly and helpful and the trails are fabulous! -
Review from Steve N.
Covina, CA
4/26/2010
I thought I try something new for a change and go light on my legs. So I decided to go on a snowmobile ride. Based on these reviews from fellow Yelper's it seems like they have never been on a snowmobile before and the experience "was totally awesome." Well I hate to say this, the Mammoth Snowmobile adventure is another rip off extension of Mammoth Mountain inc. The ride was short and it really never got to be anywhere exciting. I should have just rented a snowmobile and gone off on my own. At least the staff was nice.
