Big Bear Lake near L.A.

[aswah]

any one have any good memories or hidden spots to share? I am going there with the family in two weeks... need to escape the desert heat
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WIT WA DA DA (Peace and Unity)

Aswah, Lisa, Beaumont and Loose Lucy Too!

1989 Westy
2013 Jetta Sportswagon TDI

[desertrefugee]

Can't provide recommendations as it's been years since I was there. I can tell you that if the water is still very low, some places that used to be waterfront may now be meadow front. Pays to check before booking - or just go and wing it and stay in the hills away from town.
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- 83.5 Westfalia - 2.2 GoWesty "power"
- a bunch of vintage motorcycles
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"For I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night." - Sarah Williams

[WestiCoast]

Do some looking into the "yellow post sites". They are first come first serve and free. There are quite a few of them around big bear and arrowhead. Its dry camping but many sites have a table and a fire ring. No fires this time of year though. Here is a pile of info from another forum.
http://www.myjeeprocks.com/forums/search.php?searchid=38826

[PDXWesty]

I've never see so much development around a lake as Arrowhead and Big Bear. Zoom in and take a look at this RV park. Doesn't tlook like any privacy around for miles. Yikes.

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=big+bear+lake&h...a&z=18
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89 Westy 2.1 Auto

[j_dirge]

Check out camp ground at Green Valley Lake.
Might get lucky if you call, now.
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-89 GL Westy, SVX.. finally.

-57 pan f/g buggy with a 67 pancake Type 3 "S"
"Jimi Hendrix owned one. Richard Nixon did not"
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[r39o]

Plenty of GREAT memories!!!!

There in the hills are some great dirt roads that were no problem for 2 wheel drive vans. Nice roads actually.

Explore Big Bear City.

As a child I used to fish the lake, but no idea these days.

Eat at Thelma's Twin Pines, where, just like in Back to the Future, the trees are not there. It is a family kind of place, or used to be.

Enjoy.....
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"Use the SEARCH, Luke" But first visit the Vanagon FAQ!

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Click to see my ads for Cup holders, Subaru clutch fix and CLK wheels (no wheels currently)

[octogon]

Loved that area as a kid, I used to stay at my aunt/uncles cabin in Running Springs fishing and snowboarding.

[jimbrough]

aswah

having a hard time returning there myself, product of the 60`s but if it still remains, explore Deep Creek on the east side

Jim

[0to60in6min]

Holcomb Valley Road, Big Bear Ca

nice road... not a lot of people, good camp..

[wes.outside]

The closest that I have ever come to being killed while camping was at a yellow post site close to Big Bear.

Csb time...

My wife and I drove (pre-Vanagon) up from Manhattan Beach for the weekend. We had our Subie and a tent. Got one of the yellow post sites with a bunch of big trees around it. Set up camp - car on one side of the site and tent about forty feet away.

Went for a bike ride, came back, wine, and went to bed. Just before 2 am, there was a terrific boom right outside of the tent. I shot out of my bag and unzipped the rain fly - couldn't see anything because of all of the dust in the air.

As things cleared, we realized that one of the trees around the campsite had fallen right between the tent and the Subie. I have a photo of my wife standing next to the tree the next morning - the trunk is four feet thick, and because of the radiating branches, the top side is higher than my wife's head. The trunk was a good 70 feet long.

10 feet farther south and we would have been smashed kabobs.

///end csb time

The yellow post sites are great, but you might want to look at the trees around where you park. They might fall down.

This was 12 years ago, but there wasn't a lot of preventative maintenance. We used the sites after the above episode, but we definitely noticed in subsequent trips that timber management wasn't a huge priority, and so rejected about half of the sites we visited.
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'73 Thing
'86 Vanagon Syncro with Westfalia Poptop

[[email protected]]

Great camp grounds on the south side of the lake, take you tent so you can make some of the day trips up to the Hanging Tree, about 2500 ft above big bear. Check in with the BLM in town they will have maps and directions from Barstow to go up the back way to big bear. I lived in Barstow for 16 years, anything goes to beat the heat. The Barstow BLM does a tour of the desert in the spring time. I live in Independence, MO and spend my time working on my 83 Vanagon - maybe we can get out this summer - the boss will string me up on that hanging tree out side of Big Bear if I don't get out this summer.

[aswah]

thanks for the advice... this is solely an overnighter... for some reason unknownst to me I signed on for a labor and time intensive job... ho yeah I had a kid and needed money... I barely camp anymore. We are going on a two week trip in six weeks thru the Sierras... Goodbye HOT 123 degree weather and hello cold... thanks for the advice... I see enough people on my day to day so i will be hiding...
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WIT WA DA DA (Peace and Unity)

Aswah, Lisa, Beaumont and Loose Lucy Too!

1989 Westy
2013 Jetta Sportswagon TDI