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M12
Big Bear Lake - a retreat for
all seasons
By Joe Hilbers
The calendar said it was Fall but
in Los Angeles summer did not want to end. However
we knew a place where Fall had arrived. It was at
Big Bear Lake and those beautiful surrounding
mountains. Here temperatures would be moderate and
at night a refreshing nip in the air.
Quite accurately Big Bear
Lake advertises itself as the four season resort.
Each month offers a calendar of special events and
our October weekend visit was no different. On
arrival in Big Bear Village we sought out the
Visitors Bureau to learn what was happening that
weekend. As usual it was a full slate with the
Oktoberfest, the Trout Bash, and the second annual
Scarecrow Festival.
In this contest
thirty nine local businesses built and displayed an
original scarecrow in front of their store. Locals and visitors alike voted on what
scarecrow they liked the most and official ballots
were available. The vote was in six categories, most
humorous, best traditional, best use of business,
spookiest, best use of recycled materials and best
reflection of Big Bear. Winners were announced on
Halloween Night.
We took photos of
some of these original scarecrows before boarding
Miss Liberty for a cruise of the lake. Despite our
many trips to Big Bear Lake over decades, they were
mostly in winter to ski. Our knowledge of Big Bear
Lake's early beginnings was slim. Aboard Miss
Liberty we had a knowledgeable guide in Captain Jack
who told us that the need for irrigation water in
the valleys below led to the building of a dam to
create Big Bear Lake. This occurred in the last
decades of the 19th century. We were surprised on
just how large the lake actually is despite being
lower because of current drought conditions.
Captain Jack also
gave us some facts about the early history of the
area and then pointed out some of the large mansions
overlooking the lake and who owned them, many of the
names familiar as Hollywood celebrities. We noted
the many fishing craft on the lake that day taking
part in the Trout competition. Miss Liberty tours
start at Pine Knot Marina, 439 Pine Knot Avenue at
Big Bear Lake. For schedule call 909 866-8129, web
wwwpineknotmarina.com.
We were more than
just pleased with our accommodations at Bear Creek
Resort. Here we had our very own cabin which was a
complete small home in the woods. The living room
with fireplace, stacked with wood, a full kitchen
with refrigerator, full range and micro oven, two
separate bedrooms and a complete bath. These lodging
alone guaranteed a most successful weekend. At night
the resort was already decorated with the colorful
lights of the upcoming holiday season. Bear Creek
Resort is located at 40210 Big Bear Blvd., Big Bear
Lake. Telephone 877 428-9335, web
www.bearcreek-resort.com.
The Big Bear Alpine Zoo is
a wildlife animal sanctuary and rehabilitation
center. Established in 1959 it provides a 'home for
life' to one hundred and sixty non-releasable,
orphaned animals of eighty nine species.
Every October the Zoo
sponsors a Flashlight Safari on Friday and Saturday
evenings. This has become a very popular event and
the evening we attended there were almost two
hundred in attendance, more than half eager
children, all clutching a flashlight. Grizzly bears
once were plentiful in the San Bernardino Mountains
but now are represented by Tutu and her two cubs,
banished from Yellowstone National Park for
misbehavior and rescued by the Big Bear Sanctuary.
Mountain lions, bob cats, deer, coyotes, foxes and
raccoons are all residents here.
We met with Shelly Golden,
coordinator of the Friends of Big Bear Alpine Zoo as
well as some of her docents. Also Shane Smith, one
of the full time Zoo caretakers. The Big Bear Alpine
Zoo is open year round but in winter hours are
determined by weather conditions. For more
information check the web at
www.bigbearalpinezoo.org, telephone 909 866-9700.
Location is 43285 Goldmine Drive, adjacent to Bear
Mountain Ski Resort.
The Big Bear Oktoberfest is
a tradition at this mountain community. To make the
45th anniversary event special it opened in
September and continued each weekend until the
German Spooktacular on October 31. On hand to open
the event this year was the Franken Power Express
Band which came from Germany to perform the
traditional Bavarian waltzes and polkas that resound
through the Convention Center. The local Express
Band was again present and this was the group that
entertained us on our visit. We watched the Cripple
Creek Cloggers and the spirited log sawing contests.
Crowd participation is big
at Big Bear's Oktobefest and many take to the floor
for the chicken dances or join in for a polka or
two. No, not us, we were busy eating our bratwurst,
potato dumplings and apple strudel with a stein of a
fine German pale lager. During daytime there is much
to do for children as they have games to play, face
painting and much more. The evenings are reserved
for adults as the entertainment gets more energetic.
One of the more robust events is the Oktoberfest
Queen contest where the ability is to carry as many
full beer steins as possible at one time. We might
add that they weigh five pounds apiece.
Our adventures that weekend
in Big Bear Lake included two outstanding dining
experiences. One evening we were at the Royal Thai
Cafe located in the Village and met the Owner Mohan
Bist. This restaurant offers a very full menu so we
had many choices and finally decided to open with
shrimp and vegetable tempura. House specialties
included chicken Satay, grilled whole fish as well
as choices of BBQ chicken, beef or pork. We decided
on the Pad Thai noodles with chicken. This arrived
as a huge plate with egg, bean sprouts, green onions
and enough food for both my dining partner and I.
The menu also has a long list of curries and stir
fries. There is also a list of beers and wines. We
thought the wait staff attentive and the kitchen
staff talented.
Royal Thai is located at
40766 Village Drive in Big Bear Lake. It is open
Sunday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and
on Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Call 909
866-2808, on the web at
www.royalthaicafebigbear.com.
Another evening we
dined at Peppercorn Grille and we were pleased to
find that we had discovered a five star restaurant.
We learned that Peppercorn has been at Big Bear
Village for ten years offering a continental cuisine
with many choices. The wine list is outstanding and
cocktails are available.
There is a wide selection
of pizza and pastas, as well as several chicken,
lamb and pork entrees. There are seven steak
selections on the menu and a good choice of seafood
as well. At our table two selected the fresh lobster
tail while I chose the shrimp and scallop pasta
which came with a scampi sauce of roma tomatoes,
garlic, capers and parsley over linguine. Our
desserts were Tiramisu and an old fashioned root
beer float.
This restaurant displays an
excellent ambiance and a most caring and friendly
wait staff. We noticed the careful, eye pleasing
presentation of every entree we saw leaving the
kitchen. We would have liked to meet the chef but
Peppercorn was very busy the night of our visit so
such a meeting was impossible.
Peppercorn Grille is located at 553 Pine Knot Avenue
in the Village at Big Bear Lake. It is open daily
from 4 p.m. Telephone 909 866-5405, web
www.peppercorngrille.com.
© 2015 Joe Hilbers All
Rights Reserved.
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