June Mountain
Researched September 17, 2026 against the resort's own pages, Alterra event listings, California Ski Industry Association data and lift-industry records · dates and pass terms change, so we say where each one came from
June Mountain is the anti-Mammoth, and it nearly did not survive. Twenty miles north of its much larger sibling, it offers 1,500 skiable acres and 2,590 feet of vertical — more vertical than any ski area in Southern California — with a fraction of the traffic.
It is on the Ikon Pass, unlimited with no blackouts, and kids 12 and under ski free.
But you should know two things before you go. One 1961 double chair is the only way out of the base, and there is no beginner route back down to it — beginners ride that chair down at the end of the day. And June publishes no expert terrain and only 15% beginner. It is a mountain for confident intermediates and advanced skiers.
The closure nobody mentions, which explains everything else
In 2012, Mammoth Mountain — then June's owner — shut June Mountain down outright for the 2012-13 season and laid off its staff. It was covered nationally at the time. The mountain reopened for 2013-14 only after sustained pressure from the local community and Mono County.
Mammoth's then-chief executive publicly promised snowmaking and a new lift up the face as part of the reprieve. A local paper revisited those commitments six years later under the headline "Promises, Promises." June still has no snowmaking, and its base lift is still the one installed in 1961.
That history is not trivia — it is the explanation. It is why the lift infrastructure is what it is, why the mountain feels frozen in a good way, and why the people who love June are unusually loyal to it. It is also why you should treat June as entirely natural-snow dependent: there is no plant standing between it and a warm winter.
J1, and the thing to understand before you bring a beginner
June has an unusual layout that almost no guide explains properly.
J1 is the only lift out of the base. It is a fixed-grip double from 1961 on original Riblet towers, roughly 3,000 feet long. Every skier on the mountain rides it up.
And there is no beginner route from mid-mountain back down to the base. So beginners — and anyone who does not want the run-out — ride J1 back down at the end of the day.
Downloading on J1 is normal and designed-in, not a failure. The lift is built and staffed for full downloading capacity, and the resort sells a free scenic ride on J1 to parents who want to join a child at the mid-mountain Chalet. Nobody will look at you strangely. But if you are bringing a nervous first-timer, know in advance that their day ends with a chairlift ride down, and decide whether that suits them.
The beginner terrain itself sits mid-mountain, around the Chalet, served by the J2 and J3 pods. Above that, J6 is a high-speed quad over intermediate cruisers and J7 a high-speed quad into the advanced terrain.
One counterintuitive consequence worth planning around: because J1 is the single base lift, June can have real lift lines at the bottom while the mountain above feels deserted. Get up early, and the queue is the only crowd you will meet all day.
The numbers
| June Mountain | For comparison | |
|---|---|---|
| Skiable acres | 1,500 | More than all three Big Bear mountains combined (678) |
| Vertical drop | 2,590 ft | More than any Southern California ski area |
| Base / summit | 7,545 / 10,090 ft | Mammoth summits at 11,053 ft |
| Runs | 41 | Mammoth has 175 |
| Lifts | 7 per CSIA — 2 quads, 4 doubles, 1 surface (the resort says 6, not counting the surface lift) | Mammoth has 28 |
| Average annual snowfall | 250 in | Mammoth averages 400 in |
| Terrain | 15% beginner, 40% intermediate, 45% advanced, 0% expert | — |
| Longest run | Silverado, 2 miles | — |
| Snowmaking | None | — |
We give the lift count both ways because the resort and the industry association count differently — the resort publishes 6 lifts and does not appear to include the surface lift that CSIA counts. Neither is wrong.
Pass access and opening
Ikon Pass
Full Ikon: unlimited, no blackout dates.
Ikon Base: limited, with blackouts — December 26-30 2026, January 16-17 2027, and February 13-14 2027.
June does not sell Ikon products directly; they are bought through Ikon.
June Mountain Season Pass
Unlimited June access, no blackouts. And the headline for families: the June Mountain Kids Season Pass is free for children 12 and under, which replaces day tickets for the season.
Opening 2026-27
December 19, 2026, per Alterra's own event listing, lifts from 7:30am.
June's own pass page hedges to "usually mid-December, snow permitting" — so treat the 19th as the published target rather than a guarantee, especially given there is no snowmaking to force the issue.
One thing we could not verify: whether a Mammoth-specific season pass includes June Mountain. June's own pass page lists only its own pass and Ikon products as routes in. Alterra owns both mountains, but we are not going to assume that means shared access — check with the operator before buying on that basis.
See our Ikon Pass in California guide for the full picture.
Where to stay, and getting there
June Lake village sits below the mountain in the June Lake Loop, and the resort itself describes it as "a limited selection of locally owned lodging options." That is an accurate and refreshingly honest description — this is not a resort town with a bed base.
Mammoth Lakes is about 30 minutes south by the resort's own reckoning, with a far wider range of hotels, condos and rentals. The trade-off is straightforward:
Stay in June Lake
You get the quiet, the lake, and a two-minute drive to the lift. You give up choice, dining and any real fallback if the mountain does not open.
Stay in Mammoth
Far more lodging, and Mammoth as your backup mountain on a bad day. You drive 30 minutes each way, on US-395, in winter.
Assume you need a car. There is no dedicated ski shuttle between June Lake and Mammoth. The regional transit authority runs winter routes around Mammoth Lakes and the US-395 corridor, but we could not confirm any service usable for a ski day at June — so do not plan a car-free trip around it.
Getting to the Eastern Sierra at all is the harder problem, and it is its own subject: Tioga Pass is closed through the entire ski season, so there is no direct crossing from the west. Our Eastern Sierra guide covers the routes, and the Mammoth lodging guide covers the larger bed base.
Who June is for
| If you are… | Verdict |
|---|---|
| A confident intermediate or advanced skier | Yes. 45% advanced terrain, 2,590 ft of vertical, and almost nobody on it |
| An Ikon holder already going to Mammoth | Yes, take a day. Unlimited on full Ikon, 20 miles north, and a completely different feel |
| A family with children 12 and under | Strong yes on price — kids ski free — but read the J1 download note above first |
| A first-time skier | Probably not. 15% beginner terrain, all of it mid-mountain, and your day ends riding a chairlift down |
| Chasing steeps and cliffs | No. June publishes no expert terrain at all. Mammoth is 20 miles south |
| Going in a thin snow year | Check first. No snowmaking means no insurance |
June Mountain — frequently asked questions
Is June Mountain good for beginners?
It is cheap for families, because children 12 and under ski free on the June Mountain Kids Season Pass, but it is not an easy mountain to learn on. June publishes 15 percent beginner terrain against 45 percent advanced, and all the beginner terrain sits mid-mountain rather than at the base. More importantly, there is no beginner route from mid-mountain back down, so beginners ride the J1 chairlift down at the end of the day. That is normal and the lift is set up for it, but a nervous first-timer should know before they go.
Is June Mountain on the Ikon Pass?
Yes. The full Ikon Pass gives unlimited access with no blackout dates. The Ikon Base Pass is limited and carries blackouts on December 26 to 30 2026, January 16 to 17 2027, and February 13 to 14 2027. June also sells its own season pass, which is unlimited with no blackouts. We could not verify whether a Mammoth-specific season pass includes June, so check with the operator rather than assuming shared Alterra ownership means shared access.
When does June Mountain open for 2026-27?
December 19 2026 is the published target, from Alterra event listings, with lifts spinning at 7:30am. June itself hedges to usually mid-December, snow permitting. That hedge matters more here than at most resorts because June has no snowmaking, so the opening date depends entirely on natural snow.
How big is June Mountain?
1,500 skiable acres with 2,590 feet of vertical drop, 41 runs and a summit of 10,090 feet. That is more skiable terrain than all three Big Bear mountains combined and more vertical drop than any ski area in Southern California. It is still much smaller than Mammoth, which has 3,500 acres, 175 runs and 28 lifts.
Does June Mountain have snowmaking?
No. June is entirely dependent on natural snow and averages 250 inches a year. Snowmaking was publicly promised in 2013 as part of the deal that reopened the mountain after its closure, but it was never built. In a thin year that makes June far more exposed than resorts with a snowmaking plant, so check conditions before committing to a trip.
Is June Mountain worth visiting if you have Mammoth nearby?
For many people yes. June is about 20 miles north on US-395, roughly 30 minutes from Mammoth Lakes by the resort own reckoning, and it is a completely different experience: far quieter, 2,590 feet of vertical, and 45 percent advanced terrain. The trade-off is fewer lifts, no snowmaking and a 1961 double chair as the only way out of the base, which can produce a queue at the bottom even when the mountain above is empty.
Where should you stay for June Mountain?
June Lake village is closest and the resort describes its lodging as a limited selection of locally owned options. Mammoth Lakes is about 30 minutes south with far more hotels, condos and rentals, plus a backup mountain if June has a bad day. There is no dedicated ski shuttle between the two, so assume you need a car either way.
How we sourced this
Acreage, vertical, elevation, run and lift counts, terrain percentages and snowfall are California Ski Industry Association figures, chosen so this page is comparable with the rest of our resort coverage. Where the resort publishes a different lift count, we have given both and explained the difference rather than picking one.
Ikon terms, blackout dates, the kids-ski-free pass and the lodging description are from June Mountain's own pages. The December 19 opening date is from Alterra's event listing. The J1 lift details are from lift-industry records, and the downloading arrangement is corroborated by the resort's own first-timer guidance. The 2012 closure and the unfulfilled snowmaking promise are from contemporary national and local reporting.
What we could not verify: whether a Mammoth season pass includes June, whether any regional bus is usable for a ski day from June Lake, and current lodging inventory in June Lake by property. We have said so above rather than guessing.
Plan the trip
Getting to the Eastern Sierra in winter is the hard part — start there.
Eastern Sierra guideMammothSnow forecastIkon PassTerrain figures are California Ski Industry Association data; pass terms, opening dates and lodging descriptions are the resort's own published information for 2026-27 and change without notice. June Mountain has no snowmaking, so opening and closing dates depend on natural snow. SnoCal is not affiliated with June Mountain, Alterra or any pass operator.