Final American Bald Eagle Count of the Season Slated for Saturday

The Big Bear Valley’s American Bald Eagle population has fluctuated over the last 22 years, during which time biologists from the San Bernardino National Forest have conducted counts during the winter months. Since the late ’70s, Big Bear’s eagle population has soared to as many as 35-40 and dropped to as little as six or seven in our area; during the most recent eagle count in February, there were nine eagles wintering in the Big Bear Valley and, surrounding the mountain lakes of the San Bernardino National Forest, a total of 15 eagles. The Forest Service’s radio tracking of American Bald Eagles has indicated that some of the same individual eagles return to the San Bernardino mountains each year, though they tend to move between Big Bear, Arrowhead and Silverwood Lakes—these same eagles have also traveled to Montana, Wyoming, Idaho and Canada for the summer season. For those interested in observing the eagles, which tend to stay here through early April, the final eagle count of the season takes place this Saturday, March 13. Volunteers need not have experience, but are asked to bring binoculars and a watch and dress warmly. The Big Bear-specific eagle count begins at the Big Bear Discovery Center, on Big Bear Lake’s North Shore, at 8am; following a briefing by biologists, volunteers will scout for eagles along Big Bear Lake and in the Baldwin Lake area (until about 10am).

SBNFA’s Forest Aid Sprouts “March Madness” Activities in Support of Forest Restoration

Big Bear Valley, CA — The burn areas near Butler Peak, site of the September 2007 Butler and Butler #2 Fires to the west of Fawnskin, will be the focus of the Forest Aid 2010 replanting effort overseen by the San Bernardino National Forest Association. This spring, the SBNFA’s Forest Aid will partner with TreePeople to plant 25,000 seedlings, continuing the 2009 project launched at Hanna Flats Campground and surrounding the YMCA’s Camp Whittle, to restore and revitalize the forests of the San Bernardino mountains; though contingent on the weather, the first planting day is scheduled for Saturday, April 10. However, before planting begins, the SBNFA is encouraging community members to jump on the Lighthouse Project’s Make a Million Smiles volunteering campaign, and launching March Madness events in support of forest restoration. SBNFA’s Sarah Miggins explains, “Forest Aid 2010 is especially critical to the Big Bear Valley restoration efforts. Our goal of 25,000 seedlings in this short period of time is a rally cry for the Big Bear community to help restore our backyard. It’s a sort of madness, if you will, to build awareness and recruit the thousands of volunteers needed to meet our goal.” To that end, March Madness activities, which will offer information about the project, begin this evening, with the first of two free movies being shown at the Big Bear Discovery Center. This evening at 6:30pm, families are invited to the DC for a free screening of “A Bug’s Life”; “Finding Nemo” will be featured at March 22’s free movie night. On Wednesday, March 17, Forest Aid representatives will be on hand for Stillwell’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration at Northwoods Resort, starting at 6pm, and, on Sunday, March 28, the Bowling Barn hosts a Pins for Pines Bowling Tournament; teams of four-to-five bowlers are welcome to participate in this Forest Aid fundraising opportunity, starting at 11am on the 28th. For more information, or to sign up, contact the SBNFA’s Kathy Clapsaddle via email.

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Funding Filters to Our Area, for Forest Trails, Highway Upgrade and School District

This week marked the first anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act established by President Obama, and the appropriations of federal funding have made their way to the Big Bear Valley. Earlier this month, the Bear Valley Unified School District was able to hire a new Student Attendance/Safety Officer, a position that is federally funded through 2011 and will ultimately help the school district generate revenue from the state should student attendance increase.

In March 2009, the San Bernardino National Forest received $1.5 million in ARRA funding, which is being used to address the backlog of trail needs on the forest. The trail maintenance project, which includes reconstruction and survey work, was initially targeted to address 26 miles of trails and roads–including 3N16 in the Holcomb Valley area, 3N12 near Delamar Mountain and 2N09 in Polique Canyon—but, given the service of the Los Angeles and California Conservation Corps and the newly established Urban Conservation Corps of the San Bernardino National Forest Association, the actual accomplishment, so far, is 116 miles of trail maintenance on our local forest.
CalTrans has seen its share of Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding, to the tune of $2.45 billion for, to date, 481 projects statewide. Among those is the Lucerne-area project, which started in January, to realign Highway 18 at Camp Rock Road and build a new Cushenberry Creek Bridge, just northwest of the current bridge. Per Project Manager Ron Rolstad of SEMA Construction, “This project came along at a good time, when there wasn’t a lot of work out there. It opened up opportunities for our employees, subcontractors and suppliers in the High Desert area.” Rolstad tells KBHR that they don’t expect there will be any flagging, or subsequent delays, on the Highway 18 project at the base of the mountain until the new Cushenberry Creek Bridge nears completion, which should be late June/early July.

American Bald Eagle Count Now Up to Nine for the Big Bear Valley

Big Bear Valley, CA — Twenty-seven volunteers joined U.S. Forest Service biologists at the Big Bear Discovery Center on Saturday morning, to participate in this season’s third American bald eagle count for areas that included Big Bear Lake and Baldwin Lake. During the one-hour count on the 13th, nine eagles were spotted in the Big Bear Valley and, of those, four were adults, and five juveniles (as indicated by their brown coloring, though juveniles are the same size as adult eagles). The San Bernardino National Forest’s February eagle count is part of the mid-winter bald eagle census, conducted since 1978 to determine the number of eagles wintering near lakes in the San Bernardino and San Jacinto Mountains. As of this week, a total of 15 eagles (including the nine in our area) were spotted in the San Bernardino National Forest’s survey area, which also includes Lake Arrowhead, Lake Gregory, Silverwood Lake and Lake Hemet. Eagles winter in these areas, as they are within the Pacific Migratory Flyway, bringing millions of ducks which, along with fish, are food for the eagles. If you want to observe one of the nine eagles here in the Big Bear Valley, Forest Service biologists suggest looking in the tallest trees around the lakeshore or, when the lake is partially frozen (as it is now), look for eagles perched on the ice near small groups of ducks using open water pockets. December and January counts for our area indicated four and six eagles; highest counts for February were in 1979, when 27 were spotted in our area, and 1981, when there were 25. The next local eagle count will take place on Saturday, March 13.

It’s Official: The Amgen Tour of California to Cycle Into Big Bear on Highways 18, 38 on May 21

Big Bear Valley, CA — It’s official as of today: the 2010 Amgen Tour of California will be making its way from Pasadena to Big Bear on Friday, May 21st. The route for this, stage 6 of the eight-day race covering California and including the world’s top professional cyclists, including Lance Armstrong, Levi Leipheimer, Dave Zabriskie and George Hincapie, is the most challenging and is known as the queen stage. According to Andrew Mesick, president of race presenter AEG Sports, “The May timing of the 2010 edition of the Amgen Tour of California is going to allow us to visit some challenging new areas of California that previously were not possible due to the weather. The stage 6 route from Pasadena to Big Bear is the perfect example, with our first-ever mountain finish at a 7,000 foot elevation.”
Cyclists will begin their May 21 ride in front of Pasadena City Hall at 9:45am, and will ride 135 miles and climb more than 12,000 feet before reaching Snow Summit in Big Bear Lake in roughly the 3pm hour for the finish. The mountain portion of the route will include Highway 138 to Silverwood Lake before segueing onto Highway 18 above Crestline, through the Lake Arrowhead area, past Running Springs and along Arctic Circle to the Big Bear Dam, where riders will then take Highway 38 into Fawnskin, cross Stanfield Cutoff over Big Bear Lake, then take Sandalwood Drive (behind the Interlaken Center), Fox Farm Road, Garstin Drive, and then the final push, up Summit Boulevard to finish the race at Summit and Switzerland Drive.
The Tour of California is the largest cycling event in America, said to now be on par with the Tour de France, and it is expected that, given numbers from 2009’s fourth annual event, will reach an international audience of 3.5 billion. In a statement from County Supervisor Neil Derry, who this week appropriated $40,000 in funds to promote and stage the event, he said, “All eyes will be on San Bernardino County as we host the first mountaintop finish, and I am excited about the immediate economic impact and broader ability, to showcase our region as a great place to do business. Past host cities and surrounding regions have seen a noticeable impact in economic activity and we are hopeful to benefit from the same during these tough economic times.” In an effort to keep cycling enthusiasts and race fans in the Big Bear Valley through the weekend, local organizers will host the Tour de Big Bear on Saturday, May 22.

Over 200 Brave the Elements to Race in the Third Annual Snowshoe the Bear

Big Bear Lake, CA — For the first two rounds of Snowshoe the Bear, the local snowshoeing event launched by Equada Outfitters and Team Sole in 2008, the clouds parted and racers enjoyed fresh snow under sunny skies. Not so for this, the third annual Snowshoe the Bear, which launched from the Village of Big Bear Lake on Saturday, February 6—it was a wet morning and though there was plenty of snow coverage on the street at the starting line thanks to the City’s Public Works crews, conditions were a bit more arduous for the over 200 participants in the 5K and 10K snowshoe races. However, Saturday’s storm provided some snow during the race, at higher elevations where the course ran along trails of the San Bernardino National Forest.
The first snowshoer to cross the finish line was local Jonathan Stiles, who was also the first to cross the finish line in the 5K of September’s Run the Bear. Other top male finishers in the 5K were Steve Blaine and Dale Beeson; top 5K females were Lauren Sullivan and Susan Maya and Lisa Waner, both of Big Bear Lake. In the 10K competition, overall leader was Adam Williams, a Snow Summit ski patroller and resident of Big Bear Lake; Williams was followed by Iggy Rodriques of Argentina (who’s living in Big Bear for the winter) and 15-year-old Casey Willliams (no relation to Adam, and yet his mom Kim was the first female to take the Fastest Bear in the Bear title in 2008). Top female finishers in Saturday’s 10K competition were Theresa Uhrig of Los Angeles, followed by Big Bear Lake residents Kelley Brunson and Karin Parks. As Casey Williams finished third overall in the men’s category, he also took top honors in the juniors 10K, and was followed by Ramon Escobar of Baja Mexico and local Jordan Romero. In the free kids’ race, nine-year-old Carissa Wolcott, a fourth grader at Big Bear Elementary, won, retaining her title from last year.
As in years past, Snowshoe the Bear offers a perpetual trophy (in the form of a wooden bear carving by George Crezee) to the fastest locals in the 10K; this year’s Fastest Bears in the Bear are Adam Williams and Kelley Brunson, joining a list that includes the aforementioned Kim Williams, two-time champion Ted Devito and last year’s female Conquer the Bear winner Heather Devito. The Conquer the Bear series continues this year, and all who participated in Snowshoe the Bear are eligible to continue in the four-event series, which next includes a mountain bike race on June 20. For more information on Conquer the Bear, visit OpenAirBigBear.com.

Wet Storm Brings Rain, Snow; All Roads Free of Chain Requirements as of Monday

Big Bear Valley, CA — Though this weekend’s storm was a wet one, bringing rain to the lower elevations within the Big Bear Valley, atop the resorts (and at higher elevations for Saturday’s Snowshoe the Bear race, which launched from the Village before venturing onto San Bernardino National Forest trails), it is guesstimated that we received roughly eight inches of fresh snowfall. Stormy weather had prompted chain requirements on all local roads and highways over the weekend but, as of this morning [Monday, February 8], CalTrans has lifted all requirements. Though chains are not required on Highways 18, 38 or 330, or on roads within the Big Bear Valley, there may be areas, such as residential streets, where the use of chains may continue to be beneficial. But, officially, chains are not required at this time, though motorists are required to carry chains when traveling in the mountains during the winter months. Highway restrictions for big rigs and buses have also been lifted, per CalTrans. Also, snow conditions do remain in effect, so no parking of vehicles on city streets.

Big Bear Valley Trails Foundation Expanding Their Reach to Include Paths for Cross-Country Skiing, Hiking, Biking, Running, Cycling and Horseback Riding

When the snow melts, outdoor enthusiasts will again be able to enjoy the 30 miles of bike routes throughout the Big Bear Valley, though, through the efforts of the Big Bear Valley Trails Foundation, the hope is to have paths available for non-motorized travel year-round by incorporating routes not just for cycling, but cross-county skiing, hiking, running and horseback riding. In 2009, the Big Bear Valley Trails Foundation expanded their reach, became a non-profit 501C3 corporation, and are now pursuing grant funding—which is a considerable effort for the group which, only in 2006, was a handful of volunteers operating as an ad hoc committee of the Big Bear Valley Recreation and Park District focused on establishing Class 3 bike routes within Big Bear.
This initial focus was accomplished, given support from the City of Big Bear Lake and the County of San Bernardino, and, on Memorial Day weekend 2008, the coalition celebrated the ribbon cutting for 30 miles of bike routes (15 in Big Bear Lake and 17 in the East Valley), the installation of 37 “share the road” signs around the perimeter of Big Bear Lake and beyond, the completion and distribution of Valley-wide bike trails maps, and a community Bike Ride for Ryan, in support of local Olympic marathon runner Ryan Hall. The group has since incorporated equestrian, hiking, running and cross-county skiing enthusiasts into their Foundation Board, as well as representatives from the San Bernardino National Forest and the City, to achieve their mission, which is to create, enhance, preserve and promote non-motorized use of Big Bear Valley trails and roadways for the enjoyment and transportation of residents and visitors. Ongoing efforts of the group include the design and development of a multi-use path around Baldwin Lake, as well as one between Stanfield Cutoff and Division, and the pursuit of funding for a Valley-wide master plan of trails both on the Valley floor and perimeter mountains; they are also working with the City and County as developments are proposed, to incorporate right of way access and funding for the multi-use paths. A long-term goal of the Big Bear Valley Trails Foundation is to explore the possibility of providing a trail guide and information service.
To fund these efforts, the foundation will next week host their first fundraiser, billed as “Pizza and Pizzazz”; all-you-can-eat pizza (for $15), as well as salad and soft drinks, will be provided at Maggio’s in the Interlaken Center, and the pizzazz will be provided by local entertainers Mike Cross and Emily Dunn, as well as Brian Adams, Kim Boda, Steve Cassling, Beth Gardner, John Grandi, Elena Peavy, Nancy Walker and Ty Warren. The entire community is invited to the February 9 event, from 5 to 8pm, to enjoy pizza and pizzazz and find out more about the Big Bear Valley Trails Foundation. For more information on Pizza and Pizzazz, see our event listing or call Phil Hamilton at 585-3467; for more on the Trails Foundation, visit their website at BigBearValleyTrailsFoundation.org.

Eleven Days and Five Feet of Snow Later, All Known Electric Outages Restored by Bear Valley Electric Service, Assisted by Mutual Aid Crews

The work load has been non-stop for the crews of Bear Valley Electric, who have been addressing downed power poles (since five of them were sheared in strong winds on Monday, January 18), electric outages, heavy snow and tree limbs on power lines, and riser repair reconnects for 11 days but, per Operations Manager Ken Markling today, “We are in pretty good shape. All known customers without power have been restored. All of our known outages were taken care of by Wednesday and Thursday, so now we’re doing the mop up of odds and ends. We still have a couple locations where we know we have trouble, up in the U.S. Forest lease cabins, so we’re working on those.” The 13 employees that make up the electric company’s four crews in the field have, this week, been assisted by mutual aid crews dispatched from Southern California Edison and PAR Electric to deal with the overwhelming amount of work to be done Valley-wide. “It’s been almost 10 years since we called in mutual aid,” Markling tells KBHR, “but nothing on this scale. On two other occasions, in the past 15-20 years, but this is the longest mutual aid request we’ve ever had.” Markling notes that meter readers and office staff of Bear Valley Electric were also sent out into the field with repair crews. He adds, “With the loaner crews, we put a BVES employee with each of them, for directions, materials, as runners. So, we had everybody out working, which further diluted our work force.” Four of the seven visiting crews were released yesterday, and all but one is still in town today. “We’re going to keep them around,” Markling says, “in case we get some new calls from weekenders coming into town today. We’ll probably get those kinds of calls into Memorial Day—not in large numbers, but from people arriving to their weekend homes for the first time. We’ve seen that in the past, even into Fourth of July, because often times they can’t get to their cabins, especially in those Forest lease cabins, until the snow melts.” Though the core crew of 13, which Markling says was quarterbacked by Operations Supervisor John Dykesten, worked until about 9pm last night, Markling adds, “By and large, we have had nothing but community support–cards and letters, and cookies—and it’s really been appreciated. It’s really what sustained the guys out there, knowing they have the support and patience of the community.” Should you have electric service concerns, or find you have an outage upon arrival to your home, please call Bear Valley Electric Service at 909/866-4678.

Snowshoe the Bear Returns on February 6, as Does Conquer the Bear Series

Big Bear Lake, CA — With snow likely in the coming week, weekend athletes may want to step into some snowshoes to gear up for the third round of Snowshoe the Bear, which returns to the Village of Big Bear Lake and surrounding trails of the San Bernardino National Forest on Saturday, February 6. The family-friendly event features 5K and 10K snowshoe races, as well as a free kids snowshoe, and per event co-organizer Paul Romero, “Snowshoeing is a great sport that everyone can do. The 5K course is a great start for first-timers, kids and families, while the 10K course will challenge every level or athlete. It’s really about getting out, having fun and enjoying the great outdoors in the snow.” The February 6 event gets underway at 10am, and will also feature live music, exhibit booths, product-sponsor giveaways and pre- and post-race activities. Participants will need to provide their own snowshoes for the third annual Snowshoe the Bear, though local sporting goods stores including Equada Outfitters, Goldsmith’s Boardhouse and Bear Valley Bikes will have them available to rent. As with last year’s Snowshoe the Bear, it will be the first race in the Conquer the Bear series, which also includes challenges in mountain biking, running and kayaking over the course of the year. For more information on the Conquer the Bear series, which features two levels this year, reigning 1^st and 2^nd place Conquerers Heather and Ted Devito will present an informational meeting on Monday, January 18; the 7pm meeting at the Mountain Fitness Center, located at 42007 Fox Farm Road in Big Bear Lake, will also outline a Mountain Sports Academy for those who plan to train for both Snowshoe the Bear and the Conquer the Bear series.
Update: Given Monday’s weather and power outage, the Conquer the Bear informational meeting will instead be held on Thursday, January 28; time and place remain the same.

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