I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous at first. Sure, I have been snowboarding for quite a while now — and at Mammoth to boot — but I have never gone with the intention of taking photos (other than the occasional shitty cell phone one). That being said, my nerves quickly turned to excitement as I was racing up the 405 freeway to collect all my dormant snow gear.
The drive to Mammoth at night is one of those rites of passage that only creates more anticipation and excitement around arrival. It’s extremely windy and dark – with no street lights except for the high-beamed 18-wheelers that kind of capture your focus as you pass. When you finally get there, no matter how tired you are, it’s hard to sleep because of the anticipation of finally getting on the mountain. It’s opening weekend and everyone is in a good mood — happy to be in the clean mountain air after a summer in smoggy Southern California.
We were greeted by bluebird skies and very little wind, coming together to give us an opportunity to fully enjoy all Mammoth has to offer, from park features to breathtaking views. When I was walking around with my camera, I couldn’t help but think that I was getting a different view of the mountain than everyone else who was just there to ride. Maybe it’s true or maybe I was imagining things, but either way, we met some rad people along the way and the resulting photos are from what I thought was my own personal view.
See more of Danny Nieves’ work on his site. And be sure to follow him on Instagram.
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