More than just your ski retreat

Ifeel for our fellow Californians in the San Bernardino Mountains who were hit really hard by the latest blizzards. That said, I urge all the Angelenos who read The Times and are now complaining because they cannot get to June Lake to ski in all this new snow because the roads are closed to remember: We live here!

I am in June Lake, a town of about 600 residents just north of Mammoth Lakes. Highway 395, the main artery connecting us to vital services such as grocery stores, doctor offices and more, has been closed for weeks, opening only sporadically when the road has been cleared of snow.

We have had a relentless blast of “snow parades,” which sounds much more fun that it’s been, since December. We have 20 feet of snow at our house, which is at 7,500 feet in elevation. We cannot get to Reno or Carson City in Nevada, which have the major shopping and medical centers we rely on.

San Bernardino Mountains communities got help from the California National Guard; we have had to rely on Mono County to help us. Our Office of Emergency Services was great, but there is only so much it can do without additional government assistance.

So I say to all of you, remember us every time you come up here to ski. Joyce Kaufman, June Lake, Calif.

Gina Ferazzi Los Angeles Times STREET SIGNS stick out above piles of snow plowed from roads off Highway 138 in the San Bernardino Mountains community of Crestline on Monday.