I had a chance to travel to Big Bear, California recently with my husband Brian, and we spent a couple of days exploring both the town and prospecting some potential Bronco Sport trails, many of which were located just a few minutes from our hotel. Why?
Bronco Nation is hosting our first all-Sports member drive on July 29, and we would love for you to come out and join us.
- Start: Frisbie Park (1901 N Acacia Ave, Rialto, CA 92376)
- Duration: 8AM – 4PM
We were pleased by what we found and wanted to share some information and photos in case you’d like to do some exploring with us on your own.
Boogie Down to Big Bear
This was our first trip to Big Bear, and we accessed it from San Bernadino using Highway 18 that travels through Arrowhead Springs. This drive in and of itself is very scenic with several pull-offs to capture photos.
Big Bear is quaint and scenic. Little bungalow hotels and local restaurants and shops are some of the many attractions to Big Bear, and we hope you will check them out like we did. We randomly chose the Robin Hood hotel because of its location and that rustic, cabin-like feel. These rooms are nothing special, but they are clean, and the hotel has a nice restaurant with a big outdoor patio area. Surprisingly enough, the next morning, we found a Cyber Orange Bronco Sport in the parking lot and snapped a couple of pictures, only to find out that it belonged to the hotel owner, a nice coincidence.
The Adventure Takes Off
Now, let’s talk off-roading. Our trail vehicle was a Nissan Rogue AWD rental (that I drove with care!), so you can feel comfortable that any combination of Bronco trim and driver expertise is going to be more than capable of completing and enjoying these rides.
The first area we explored was a route I had seen online called Skyline Drive. It was described as easy in more than one location, and I was able to download the .gpx track into Gaia on the Fun Trek’s website. With Apple CarPlay, we could see our route on the SUV’s display screen. The direction we chose led us south on Mill Creek Road toward Bluff Lake. The road quickly became a dirt trail but was easy to navigate and had good signage and kiosks with maps. There are dispersed campsites in the area, and we saw a few people camping.
Once you pass the turn off to Bluff Lake, the trail becomes narrower and steeper. There are a few ruts that were easily managed with the SUV, but it’s important to pay attention to changing trail conditions and understand that the road could be more muddy or challenging. We eventually made it up to Grandview Point, which looks over a broad expanse of rolling hills and mountains. The short hike to the overlook was scenic and absolutely beautiful. We turned around at this point, returning using a different route –– with a couple of creek crossings –– called Knickerbocker road, which came out right in town near our hotel.
The following day, we checked out the North shore of Big Bear, and drove a very easy track that left out of the town of Fawnskin and traveled part of the Rim of the World Drive. There was less traffic noted in this area, but the drive did parallel the Pacific Crest Trail, an epic hiking route, so I’m guessing later in the season it may be busier. The trail also passed close by Delamar Mountain, so the road was often steep and winding. We discovered a sign that pointed to Wilbur’s grave, so we decided to explore a bit off track and stretch our legs for a few minutes.
Research after our drive showed that Wilbur was part of the gold rush days when Bill Holcomb discovered the richest gold field in Southern California. Wilbur was a miner who later became the first tax assessor in San Bernadino County. Before he died, he was asked to be buried next to his favorite pond. It’s a peaceful area but Wilbur’s grave is a bit eclectic, with empty whiskey bottles and other mementos left on top of it. We journeyed on and passed a campground with bathrooms before driving down the rest of the road and back to Big Bear.
There are several trails in the area, we found the easy and moderate –– fully in the wheelhouse of the Sport, but again, if you are uncomfortable or trail conditions have changed, do not proceed.
We will be exploring this area again on July 29 in a trail run made up entirely of Bronco Sports, and we hope you’ll get a chance join us!
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