Mt. Waterman and Snowcrest/Kratka Ridge

Yes indeed! I also got an email from the USFS Snow Ranger who administers their permit up here confirming the deal. Their snow phone is working again as well..(sorta, as its a new message, but apparently its Newcomb on the report!)

818-790-2002
 
snowave":rdzh596d said:
Yes indeed! I also got an email from the USFS Snow Ranger who administers their permit up here confirming the deal. Their snow phone is working again as well..(sorta, as its a new message, but apparently its Newcomb on the report!)

818-790-2002
Click to expand...

Bump.

So is there a deal in place or not? El Dog's post in the locked Waterman thread seems to suggest otherwise.

<<I was involved in the failed purchase of Mt. Waterman last spring. The investor $$ fell through due to a very risky EIS that would likely yeild a decision by the Forest Service not to allow the use of snowmaking. ... I would like for everyone to know that Lynn Newcomb is very passionate about the mountain that he and his father built. He would like nothing more than to see it run again. However, it would take a tremendous visionary with dollars to burn to make it work. ...>>
 
The deal is done. The new owners are working hard to get the place upgraded to operate properly. There is ALOT of work to be done as the place was run on a shoestring for many years just to keep it barely going. I was talking to some people working up there yesterday, and they said its coming along slowly (due to so much work) but surely. They are still expected to operate this winter, but likely won't have all the improvements done.
 
I have been on the hill twice in the last 3 weeks and can report that there is a great deal of work - Warming Hut and Restrooms are being re-abilitated. The lifts are being serviced. Lynn has been on the hill the last few weeks with several of his long term employees. The new owner, Rick Metcaff, really want to bring the hill back to when we all loved to spend time at Waterman. I will be up there again next weekend and hope to have new pictures.
 
Waterman this past Saturday AM

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IMG_3190.jpg
 
Mt. Waterman does not have a presence at the L.A. Ski Show, which I visited last night. They were slated to share a small booth with Trinity Mountain (you could see the sign taped over), new ownership that took over Green Valley from the church group a year ago. Green Valley Lake is about a 10 mile detour from the road between Running Springs and Snow Valley. Trinity has $25 lift tickets, 400 vertical, a chair, a poma and a sledding/snow play area and is marketing itself primarily to groups with a strong family orientation. And a no tolerance policy toward the excesses of the "urban environment/boorish behavior" sometimes on exhibit at Bear Mt. and Mt. High West. There is no snowmaking, but the area first operated last March when SoCal had some natural snow for a few weeks.

The Trinity rep was aware of progress at Waterman. As I had heard by rumor elsewhere, the recent warm and dry weather has been a positive development for Mt. Waterman as they prepare their lifts for a load test and inspection scheduled Dec. 5. Passing that inspection should permit Mt. Waterman to open when they get natural snow after that. If there were snow in November preparations would be impeded and it would be difficult to be ready by Dec. 5. Waterman's new management considers the Dec. 5 inspection to be top priority and is thus expending no efforts on anything else at the moment, such as the L.A. Ski Show.
 
a couple of Waterman patrollers were at the Viper Room snow stoke party last night.. (and what a party it was!) I just missed meeting them though.. althouhg I do indirectly know a couple of the other guys.

That's the first I 've heard of any real attempt to market the "new" Waterman. I wish they'd make more of an effort to put up even a simple website or something instead of relying on word of mouth. The waterman patrol site is nice for partollers, but useless for the public as it contains almost no updated information about the goings on at the hill, other than patrol oriented stuff.

Not a good way to get word out about trying to operate a business thats has a history of being closed more than open the last several years.

although, Lynn is still updating the snow phone with some general info..

818-790-2002
 
Yes, I think it was a mistake for Mt. Waterman not to send one person to L.A. Ski Show to share the booth that was already there for Trinity.
 
I have just heard from the Mountain Manager that Chair 1 has passed the tramway inspection as upgraded to current standards. There are still a few items to correct as is often the case and they will be addressed within the week.
There has been extensive upgrades of the facilities on top of the Mountain and they will focus on completing the Warming Hut, the Restrooms, and the First Aid Room. They are projecting a mid January opening.
 
Any news on the happenings at Mt. Waterman. Not in the area at this time, so I don't know even if there is snow. What's going on up there? I would like to get some info on what the new owner has in the plans for years to come
 
SoCal has had about 15 inches of natural snow this season, not even close to enough for Mt. Waterman to consider opening.

I'm in Canada but my understading is that it rained in SoCal yesterday. With Mt. High reporting no new snow and a "wet granular" surface, I think we all (especially the easterners) know what that means.
 
actually, it hasn't rained anywhere in socal yet.. the hose of moisture is still focused from about Monterey north.. Mammoth had only gotten a couple inches so far. This is supposed to change tomorrow afternoon as the system starts to sink south. 1-2" of rain expected in the LA county mountains, with less in the SBD's. The snow level is expected to remain well above 7,000 ft through the majority of the storm. A smaller, but colder system is expected by Tuesday.

Re: Waterman, I will find out tomorrow for sure, but it is to my understanding that they STILL have not gotten any lifts certified yet. The date has been postponed numerous times for various reasons.. including the last scheduled date on Jan. 29th not happening. I was told that if they get chair 1 certified, but cannot open to sliding due to lack of snow, they will likley open up the newly remodeled warming hut for food and beer.. which for this season, sounds about as much fun as riding! :lol:

btw, an interesting note.. while Tony is correct with snow totals for most of socal, Snow valley and Trinity Mtn Resort (old green valley) have both gotten around 60" of snow this season.. but it still hasn't seemed to help much or even open Trinity.
 
you can pretty much consider Waterman dead in the water for the time being.. not only due to lack of snow, but they can't seem to get their stuff together for lift certifications..(amongst other things) still no load test, and likly not one going to be scheduled for some time.

I'm not so much concerned for this winter for snow sliding.. but my concern is if they can/will get it together for the future operations. (including summer hiking/beer/burgers/mtn biking) and next winter.
 
I wasn't here Thursday so I didn't know that storm missed SoCal. But I do know it rained all Saturday night and no one reported new snow Sunday or Monday.

No one in SoCal has had anywhere near 60 inches of natural snow this season. My informal monitoring has totalled 15, which corroborates the Mt. High quote of 16.

The sustained cold weather in the second half of January resulted in 90% operation in packed powder at Big Bear. But with warm and then rain in February it can't be packed powder any more. Nonetheless, Big Bear still has full coverage and conditions will be MUCH better there than elsewhere in SoCal during a season like this.
 
I was up at mt. high yesterday, but not for riding. My band actually got booked to play at some promotional vendor fair thing, anyway, the conditions looked absolutely terrible from the base, (looked like wet granular on top of an ice skating rink) and they definatly lost a good amount of snow. On the way in i could see brown spots all over sundance and goldrush at east, and the lift was shut. I just checked the website and its says that goldrush is still open, so i guess they didnt close east after all.

Anyway, WE NEED SNOW
 
Tony Crocker":1d20fgma said:
I wasn't here Thursday so I didn't know that storm missed SoCal. But I do know it rained all Saturday night and no one reported new snow Sunday or Monday.

No one in SoCal has had anywhere near 60 inches of natural snow this season. My informal monitoring has totalled 15, which corroborates the Mt. High quote of 16.
Click to expand...

Baldy did report 1-2" .. but hey, its Baldy.. and that's likely at the notch, 7,800 ft.

also, here's where I got the 61" for trinity...

http://www.trinitymountainresort.com/

Snow Valley also has a similar total, but a bit less (36-48" so far )

http://www.snow-valley.com/explore_sv/snow_report.html

If you remember, several of those small storms this year that put down only a few inches at BBMR managed to hit the lee side of the SBD's a bit harder (as often happens) and dump 6-12" a few times on SV and TM, which both sit west of BB in that favorable upslope area for most storms coming in from the NW.
 
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