Was every raindrop once a snowflake?

I'm getting pretty excited about going skiing at Mammoth - in two weeks exactly. The skiing should be lots of fun but I'm also looking forward to the snow.

I've never lived anywhere where snow was prevalent enough to be an inconvenience in winter, so I always associate it with boyhood yuletide excitement. Mammoth has been getting ridiculous amounts of snow this past week, up to two foot per day. Meanwhile we're 300 miles away and get to wander around like beach idiots in t-shirts.

But I digress. Mammoth is getting lots of snow due to (in part) its altitude; about 11,000 feet at the peak. Meanwhile, the nearby (2-3 hours drive) ski resorts of Snow Summit and Mountain High are only half open with rain last week, and very modest amounts of snow this week. Why? They are at a lower altitude; around 9000 feet.

So is it as simple as that? Whenever it is raining, anywhere, if you could take a magic lift up a few thousand feet would you find yourself in a snowstorm? If so, then surely that's the sort of story that parents would tell their children. If not, then why not?