A true year-round outdoor playground is a place called Mammoth Lakes, CA. The scenery is stunning any time of year and there are so many options for adventurous travelers!

Mammoth Lakes is a fairly compact town at the base of Mammoth Mountain Resort which means getting around town can be done fairly easily. There is a free shuttle system throughout town that runs year-round and efficiently transports guests from town to areas such as the Main Lodge, which is the jumping off point for the summer shuttle to Devil’s Postpile National Monument and Reds Meadow, or over to Twin Lakes and other lakes beyond for fishing, hiking, and more outdoor pursuits. And, of course, in winter, a shuttle ride is offered to both alpine and cross country ski areas.

While in Mammoth Lakes last week, I made it a point to check out The Village Lodge, which is part of the Mammoth Mountain Resort properties. While the condos are all individually owned, the Resort manages most of the condos as vacation rentals. That means you have access to these spacious and comfortable condos, can stay in one of the best locations in town, and enjoy the many amenities at the Lodge!
 
The Village Lodge is in the heart of the Village at the base of Mammoth Mountain. In the winter, the gondola runs right out of the village and gets you onto the mountain!

There are 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom condos available, all with full kitchens. The number of bathrooms in each unit matches the number of bedrooms. Perfect for each room getting their own bathroom!

Aside from having one of the best locations in town for access to the mountain as well as the restaurants and shopping in the Village itself, The Village Lodge offers many other amenities for a total vacation experience with family and friends.

Movies are available from the front desk for you to enjoy in the media room!

Exercise rooms with adjoining outdoor, covered hot tub and an arcade room!

After you've had an exciting day outdoors, you can come back and relax in the cozy fireside lounge or grab a s'mores kit from the front desk and roast up some marshmallows at the outdoor fire pits!

Of course, there's a pool! A year-round heated pool and a large hot tub in the pool area. There are also two other hot tubs on property, making it easy to find one closest to your condo building.

The Village Lodge staff, particularly the front desk concierge Monica, are super friendly and eager to make your stay at Mammoth a true pleasure! 

Spring break, 2018, and we packed up the van and headed down Hwy 395 for some backcountry ski touring, the kids' first ski touring trip!
I love the drive on Hwy 395 - incredible views of snow-covered peaks, idyllic ranches, canyons, rivers, and lakes.
We camped near Virginia Lakes, halfway between Bridgeport and Mono Lake. After settling into our home-away-from-home and taking care of dinner, we now had some quality family time to spend together!

We brought two games with us and it worked brilliantly! A deck of cards and BANANAGRAMS.
The kids played the classic Go Fish card game while the parents were busy with camp set up. And, they were also able to play their own version of Banagrams. Kids excited to spell words correctly - love it! OK, so there were a few imperfections, but, they were still excited about spelling.

Banagrams also serve as handy chips for a cut-throat game of poker!
Bonus! You can play poker and spell words at the same time! We anted up words such as "rage", "deer", and "cash".

Another successful aspect of the trip was a "for real" ski tour with the kids! Our intrepid leader found a wonderfully wind-protected gully and we kept the pace appropriate for our some-what novice backcountry skiers. A few gummy bears helped the spirits soar. At the top of the saddle, we took in the views, transitioned quickly, and smiled all the way down in the lovely spring corn snow!