Kratka Ridge or Snowcrest is a
skiable area on
Waterman Mountain
Waterman Mountain, at , is a prominent peak in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles County, California, within the Angeles National Forest and San Gabriel Mountains National Monument.
The summit of Waterman Mountain marks the northern bounda ...
in the
San Gabriel Mountains of
Los Angeles County, California. Located 36 miles northeast of
La Cañada and
Pasadena
Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district.
...
along the
Angeles Crest Highway
The Angeles Crest Highway is a two-lane (one lane of travel in each direction) highway over the San Gabriel Mountains, in Los Angeles County, California. Its route is to/through the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument and the Angeles Nation ...
, it reaches a height of 7,515 feet (2,291 m).
The area had two chair lifts and a rope tow and has a total of 13 runs with a vertical drop of approximately 750 feet (230 m).
Trail difficulty can be rated as 30% beginner, 30% intermediate and 40% advanced.
The resort is located 4.2 miles (6.8 km) west of Angeles Crest Highway mile marker 52.6, about 2.7 miles (4.3 km) east of
Mount Waterman
Mount Waterman is a ski area on Waterman Mountain in the San Gabriel Mountains of the Angeles National Forest in Los Angeles County, California. The area is located on California State Route 2, the Angeles Crest Highway, and reaches a height ...
ski area, and about 2.7 miles west of the two tunnels. It is in the
Pearblossom, California
Pearblossom is an unincorporated community located in the Antelope Valley of the Mojave Desert, in northern Los Angeles County, California.
The town has a population of 2,435. The ZIP Code is 93553 and the community is inside area code 661. ...
postal
zip code (93553).
History
The area was developed in 1950 by the Joe Diener and the Angeles Winter Development Association, a group of
Mount San Gorgonio San Gorgonio is Spanish for "Saint Gorgonius";
San Gorgonio might also refer to:
Landforms and parks
*San Gorgonio Mountain, California, United States
*San Gorgonio Pass, California, United States
*San Gorgonio River, California, United States
* S ...
ski club members. In 1954, the first chairlift at Kratka Ridge was constructed. Its single chair was believed to be one of the last of its kind in operation in 2001 apart from the single chair at
Mad River Glen
Mad River Glen is a ski area in Fayston, Vermont. Located within the Green Mountain range, it sits in the Mad River Valley. Though not considered a large ski area, it has a vertical drop of , which ranks 14th in New England, and its terrain wa ...
and
t Eyak Ski Areain
ordova Alaska
During the 1980s and early 1990s, the Hensley family owned the majority interest in the ski area. Ray Hensley, a former college and professional ski racer, was the mountain manager. His father, Ed, often worked the grill in the basement beer garden below the bottom of Chair 1. They sold the ski area to John and Jacqueline Steely.
Kratka Ridge changed its name to Snowcrest, then back to Kratka Ridge. After the switch back to the original name, "Kratka" referred to the skiing and
snowboarding terrain from the base to the summit, while "Snowcrest" referred to the snowplay/tubing area at the base.
On August 29, 1999, five teenagers crashed a Toyota Camry off Angeles Crest Highway (mile marker 68) when driving home from a Jujubeats "rave" party held at the then-named Snowcrest Resort. The families of the teens took legal actions to sue the venue owners but the disputes were settled out of court. This event may have contributed to a bad image of Snowcrest, prompting the owners to change the name back to Kratka Ridge.
In 1999, an investor group led by Barry Stubblefield bought Kratka Ridge and Mt. Waterman, with plans to link them. However, the limited number of visitors delayed the expansion. The ski areas closed to the public, and then Stubblefield was killed in 2005 while skiing Mt. Waterman when it was closed and no ski patrol was present.
The ski area was open during the 2000-2001 ski season. The single chair lift was damaged by avalanche during a large storm during February 11–13, 2001, which left approximately 7 feet of snow. In December 2001, a mysterious fire destroyed the chairlift base area
and the resort has been closed since. The parent owner of the resort, Angeles Crest Resorts, collected insurance on both events but did not begin reconstruction. The ski area's closure may have been related to the fire or other economic reasons.
The permit for Kratka Ridge was revoked and the current owners had to sell it or the resort would be torn down. Another local resort,
Mountain High
Mountain High resort is a winter resort in the San Gabriel Mountains in Los Angeles County in California. Mountain High is one of the most-visited resorts in Southern California. The resort is located along State Route 2 west of Wrightwood, Cali ...
, showed interest in buying the lift structures, probably for its new North Resort.
On March 12, 2006, the ''Pasadena Star'' reported that Lynn Newcomb and Rick Metcalf, a Southern California businessman, wanted to purchase Mt. Waterman from the existing owners, including Barry Stubblefield's widow. The former manager for Mount Waterman under Lynn Newcomb later reported that Lynn Newcomb and Rick Metcalf purchased the resort and planned to have it open by the 2006-2007 winter season. Reconstruction of the chairlift base area was under way in October 2006. Plans for the area were not certain, however, as many speculated it to be a play area while neighboring Mt. Waterman hosted ski lifts.
As of April 2020, the area remains unchanged and abandoned. The single-chair chairlift is still intact yet the base of the station is non-existent. "Keep Out" signs are posted alongside the highway.
See also
*
Angeles National Forest
The Angeles National Forest (ANF) of the U.S. Forest Service is located in the San Gabriel Mountains and Sierra Pelona Mountains, primarily within Los Angeles County in southern California. The ANF manages a majority of the San Gabriel Mounta ...
*
San Gabriel Mountains National Monument
The San Gabriel Mountains National Monument is a United States National Monument managed by the U.S. Forest Service, which encompasses parts of the Angeles National Forest and the San Bernardino National Forest in California. On October 10, 2014, ...
References
External links
Kratka Ridge and Mt. Watermanarticle about the two lost ski areas of Southern California.
2000-2001 season
{{California Ski areas navbox
Defunct ski areas and resorts in California
San Gabriel Mountains
Sports venues in Los Angeles County, California
Defunct companies based in Greater Los Angeles