One week ago, we went on a two-night camping trip in Big Bear Lake, CA. Since school starts in less than two weeks, this was our last hurrah of summer.
It takes about two hours to drive to Big Bear from Orange County. There are a lot of switchbacks up the mountain, but thankfully D drove and I did not get carsick this time.
Boulder Bay Park
Our first stop was Boulder Bay Park. This park, located on the south side of the lake, is quite popular. We arrived around 11 a.m. on Sunday morning and the small parking lot was full. There were cars parked all along the street, despite “No Parking” signs. Acting like lemmings, we took our chances and did the same. (We sat at a bench within viewing distance of our car in case we saw someone starting to issue tickets). Our picnic lunch on a bench consisted of sandwiches, chips, carrots and drinks. The weather was SO pleasant with a slight breeze coming off of the lake. There was fertilizer on the grass, so I would not recommend sitting on the ground right now. I would also note that there is also a well-maintained restroom near the parking lot.
Big Bear City Hall-Happy Hills Trail
Next on our agenda was to do the short (.2 mi each way) Happy Hills Trail hike behind Big Bear City Hall. Since it was the weekend, the large parking lot was empty.
The City Hall building looks nice and new and has beautiful landscaping.
The trail itself was not crowded at all. I think we saw one other party of two the whole time we were there.
This pile of boulders made for some good picture-taking opportunities.
n reminded me of a mountain goat scrambling up these rocks.
This Happy Hills “hike” is more of a walk, and could be done even with little ones in tow.
Big Bear Lake Village
It was still a little early to check into our campground, so we made a stop at Big Bear Lake Village. This cute shopping district has a lot of dining options as well.
Some of the streets were blocked off to cars, which I believe was due to Covid. This allowed some of the restaurants to offer expanded outdoor dining options. It made for a nice pedestrian experience. I was very impressed by the number of people who were wearing masks in the Village.
Since it was starting to warm up, we were yearning for a cool treat.
We made a stop at An Ran Ju Gelato & Teahouse, which I had read about on Yelp.
It was a difficult choice since there were so many options, but we settled on a mix of passionfruit and lemon gelato. The passionfruit was tart and creamy, while the lemon tasted more like sorbet.
D ordered a milk green tea with boba, half-sweet. This did not taste like the boba milk tea we are used to. D saw them brew the tea with a real tea bag, so they do not rely on powder mixes. It definitely had more of a tea taste, and was not very sweet at all. If we had been there when it was cold, I am sure n would have loved one of their outrageous hot chocolate creations.
We did not go into any of the stores, but just walked around and did a little window shopping.
Pineknot Campground
I will go into more specifics about the Pineknot Campground in my next Big Bear post. We found our campsite without any problem and set up our tent. Then we had some time of R & R.
Pizza in Big Bear
For dinner we ordered pizza at Saucy Mama’s back in The Village.
Unfortunately, we were not very impressed with this pizza. First of all, there was WAY too much cheese. Second of all, the dough was extremely uneven, paper-thin in the middle and a thick outer crust. This made the pizza impossible to eat, with all of the cheese and toppings sliding off. D was also displeased with the lackluster service that just seemed like a bunch of younger people who did not really care about their job. This place does have a lot of positive reviews, so maybe we just caught them during a mid-summer slump.
Stanfield Marsh Wildlife and Waterfowl Habitat Park
After dinner we took a walk at the Stanfield Marsh Wildlife and Waterfowl Habitat Park.
There is a nice boardwalk that lets you walk near the marsh. (Tip, once the first boardwalk ends, keep walking and you will find another boardwalk if you want to extend your walk).
We were able to see some birds off in the distance.
At the end of our walk, we also saw a large pelican take off from the water (no picture though).
We went back to the campground and had a good night’s sleep. I will write about our next day later this week.
