Mammoth unmasked

Mammoth from the Inside: The Honest Guide to Mammoth & the Eastern Sierra, by Colleen Dunn Bates, Prospect Park Publishing, http://insidemammoth.com, $15.95

Once I liberated a phone book from the Motel 6 in Mammoth and for years it was my best guide to the place. It had all the phone numbers I needed and even a little map. But Mammoth changes, and my phone book became less and less helpful-the phone numbers got disconnected, the area code evolved, restaurants closed, and even the map became obsolete. With Colleen Dunn Bates' Mammoth From the Inside, I finally have a replacement.

For a place that has all the charm of a strip mall, Mammoth is an amazing playground of recreation -skiing, fishing, biking, hiking, camping, and rock climbing are all plentiful. But getting there is often a drag, and once there, figuring out what to do and where to go can be confusing. Bates' guide doesn't tell you everything, but it is a good place to start. From the Dweeb weather report to the best camp sites (including which ones have shade), it covers a lot of information about Mammoth and the Eastern Sierra.

Housing and dining are of course discussed, but also Bates provides those handy phone numbers for the ranger stations and camping reservations you are always looking for. The chapter on "Mammoth Holiday Hell and Heaven" is a must read if you're even thinking of going to Mammoth during a winter holiday without a game plan. At the end is a nice section on local visitor centers (four of them), websites, maps, and books for specific activities.

At 5 by 8 inches, the book easily slips into a pack, pocket, or briefcase (so you can daydream about trips to the Eastern Sierra on your lunch break). The index allows you to quickly flip to the page you need, but I recommend reading it straight through like a novel-I guarantee you'll discover new ways to play.

If you use Mammoth for an overnight stop before backpack trips and look forward to a dinner at McDonald's, then forget the book and use your money to buy beer and a good topo. But if you go to Mammoth frequently for different activities, have kids in tow, or are just bored with take-out pizza, then Mammoth From the Inside could be your new best friend.

Bates promises to donate 1 percent of the sales of her book to the Natural Environment Fund.