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Conditions in the Southern California Mountains

21
Jan 2011

Mountain Conditions are Perfect!

A Big Bear CA Weekend

Expect great conditions in Big Bear City and Big Bear Lake CA this weekend. Spring-like temperatures have given way to amazing afternoons. The temperatures at night are cold enough to blow snow. Every morning is a blue bird powder day for us so far!

The Discovery Center (MAP) sponsors snow shoe tours as long as the snow holds up in the back country. Explore the mountain with a Naturalist and enjoy the natural history of the Valley. Beginners are welcome. Adults are $35 and they limit the tour size to thirteen people.

On Sunday, Goldsmith’s Boardhouse will sponsor the snowboarding event  at Snow Summit (MAP). Things get going at 10:00 AM on Sunday.

The best route into the Valley is through Lucerne Valley on Hwy 18. Hwy 330 is closed, while Hwy 38 over Onyx Summit is clear. We have warm daytime temperatures melting the snow and freezing on the roads at night. Please drive cautiously and watch for black ice.

Food at the Resorts, Bear Mountain and Snow Summit can set you back. You can stock up on snacks at Von’s and then get some caffeine and protein on the mountain. We love Himalayan restaurant in Big Bear Lake and recommend it often. If your tastes don’t have a foreign bent, try Nottingham’s or Desi’s in the Village.

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2011 Big Bear Lake Road Conditions

15
Jan 2011

Road Conditions Holcomb Valley CA

The recent storms have affected the local road conditions. State Highway 330 has been wiped out and many take a year of two to repair.

State Highway 38, through Redlands, is open and trouble free. It is the prettiest drive in the San Bernardino National Forest. There road is has steep curves between Angeles Oaks and the South Fork of Santa Ana River. Enjoy beautiful views of snow covered Mount San Gorgonio, as you reach Onyx Summit. The highway enters the Valley from the east, into Big Bear City.

State Highway 18 from Victorville, through Lucerne Valley and up the Cushenbury Grade will have the least amount of traffic. Beware of the hairpin turns. After the climb into the mountain, Hwy 18 enters the Valley through the north shore of Baldwin Lake.

Big Bear Lake –we expect a good size crowd in the Valley this weekend. Driving conditions can become crowded. Most of us locals drive the North Shore when possible. Drive patiently and you should be good.

Back country road conditions are sketchy. We have a lot of accumulation out in the Holcomb Valley area and a lot of mud out behind Baldwin Lake. Be sure to have a cell phone to call for help if you get stuck.

We’re expecting sunny warm temperatures over the weekend. It will be gorgeous! Night time temperatures may affect the road conditions in some areas. Always watch for black ice at night in the winter.

The warm temperatures will effect conditions on the mountains. We’re suggesting snowboarders and skiers get on the mountain early. Quit when the peanut butter gets to be too much. Have lunch, then get back on for mid-afternon. As the sun goes down, the snow will firm up. The late afternoon and night-time skiing rock. Bear Mountain has the features, Snow Summit has family fun!

Today: Sunny, with a high near 58. North wind between 5 and 10 mph.

Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 31. Northwest wind around 5 mph.

Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 61. Northeast wind around 5 mph.

Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 31. North wind between 5 and 10 mph.

M.L.King Day: Sunny, with a high near 64. North wind around 10 mph.

Monday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 31.

WIND ADVISORY FOR GUSTY NORTHEAST TO EAST WINDS IN THE INLAND

VALLEYS…ORANGE COUNTY COASTAL AREAS AND MOUNTAINS AND THE SAN

DIEGO COUNTY MOUNTAINS.

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Driving to Big Bear CA

07
Jan 2011

Big Bear Lake CA with Mt. San Gorgonio in the Background

The storms in December have affected the highways leading into Big Bear Lake CA.

Hwy 330 was washed out and may not reopen for some time. If you need to come in from that direction, take Waterman Canyon to the Rim of the World. Hwy 18 will take you into Running Springs, past Snow Valley over little Arctic Circle and into the Big Bear area.

The conditions on HWY 38 are okay. Expect patches of ice, especially where you see cinders. If coming to the Mountains, try to arrive between 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM. The cold temperatures at night cause the road to freeze and create black ice.

Hwy 18 thru Lucerne Valley will be the least crowded route into the Valley. Although it’s known for its’ hair pin turns, the road tends to be less icy.

If you intend to come this weekend, please carry chains. We have a 40% chance of precipitation today, but Saturday and Sunday will be sunny with high temperatures in the mid-forties.

The snow conditions are fantastic. The temperatures are perfect. The snow holds up all day, and there’s plenty of it.

Wax your boards, pull the skis out and get on the Mountain. Big Bear Lake is Southern California’s best choice for winter fun!

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Big Bear CA Current Weather and Road Conditions for Travel

01
Jan 2011

Sunny Skies for Big Bear Lake

Current conditions in both Big Bear Lake and Big Bear City CA are sunny, clear skies and 18 degrees at 8:00 AM on New Years Day. Temperatures are expected to reach above freezing today and tonights low temperature will be 18 degrees.

Sunday may bring snow. We’ve posted the National Weather Advisory below. Travelers to Big Bear CA will want to check conditions once the storm starts to affect the mountains.

State Highway 330 is closed due to extensive storm damage. All other roads into the Valley are open without restrictions. Mountain travel requires chains be kept in the car at all times.

Forecast from the National Weather Service

New Year’s Day: Partly sunny, with a high near 34. West wind between 5 and 10 mph.

Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 18. Southwest wind around 5 mph.

Sunday: A 20 percent chance of snow showers after 10am. Partly sunny, with a high near 38. Calm wind becoming southwest between 5 and 10 mph.

Sunday Night: A 40 percent chance of snow showers. Cloudy, with a low around 20. Southwest wind between 5 and 10 mph. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Monday: A 40 percent chance of snow showers. Cloudy, with a high near 36. Southwest wind between 5 and 10 mph. New snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible.

Monday Night: A 30 percent chance of snow showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 21. Little or no snow accumulation expected.

THE SNOW LEVEL WILL BE MOSTLY NEAR 5000 FEET BUT COULD LOWER TO NEAR 3000 FEET AT TIMES. SNOW ACCUMULATIONS WILL GENERALLY BE LESS THAN 5 INCHES WITH LOCALLY GREATER AMOUNTS AT ELEVATIONS ABOVE 6000 FEET. ONLY MINOR SNOW AMOUNTS ARE EXPECTED BELOW 5000
FEET. MOST OF THE SNOW WILL FALL IN THE SAN BERNARDINO MOUNTAINS…WITH ACCUMULATIONS BECOMING PROGRESSIVELY LESS SOUTHWARD INTO SAN DIEGO COUNTY WHERE ONLY SMALL AMOUNTS ARE
EXPECTED AT THE HIGHER PEAKS.

MOTORISTS TRAVELING LATE SUNDAY AND MONDAY SHOULD CLOSELY MONITOR THE LATEST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECASTS AND STATEMENTS AND PLAN ACCORDINGLY. THE RAIN WILL CAUSE SLICK ROADS AND MOTORISTS SHOULD USE EXTRA CAUTION. DO NOT DRIVE THROUGH FLOODED AREAS OR AROUND BARRICADES. IF TRAVELING INTO THE MOUNTAINS…BE PREPARED FOR SNOW AND ICE ON THE ROADWAYS AND LOW WIND CHILL TEMPERATURES.

 

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Big Bear CA Road and Weather Conditions

28
Dec 2010

State Highway 330 is completely CLOSED due to storm damage.

State Highway 18: IS CLOSED TO TRACTOR-TRAILER SEMIS & BUSES ONLY FROM 2.2 MI NORTH OF THE JCT OF SR 330 TO BIG BEAR DAM (SAN BERNARDINO CO) – DUE TO A ROCK SLIDE -MOTORISTS ARE ADVISED TO USE AN ALTERNATE ROUTE – PASSENGER VEHICLES ARE ALLOWED THROUGH.

State Highway 38: Is open without restrictions. Watch for chain controls during the storm on Wednesday.

It look like a half a foot of snow will add to the fun at the Resort Level. This is the forecast for the San Bernardino Mountains from the National Weather Service:

…WINTER STORM TO AFFECT SOUTHWEST CALIFORNIA LATE TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY FOLLOWED BY VERY COLD WEATHER…

A STRONG STORM APPROACHING FROM THE NORTHWEST WILL MOVE THROUGH LATE TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY MORNING.

THE SNOW LEVEL WILL BE NEAR 6000 FEET IN THE NORTHERN AREAS TO 6500 FEET FARTHER SOUTH…THEN LOWER RAPIDLY BEHIND THE COLD FRONT TO ABOUT 4000 FEET. HOWEVER…MOST OF THE WIDESPREAD SIGNIFICANT PRECIPITATION WILL BE OVER BY THE TIME THE SNOW LEVEL LOWERS.

SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY MOUNTAIN RESORT LEVELS AND THE HIGHER RIVERSIDE COUNTY MOUNTAINS SHOULD RECEIVE ABOUT 3 TO 8 INCHES OF SNOW. HOWEVER…THERE COULD BE LOCALLY NEAR A FOOT OF SNOW ON THE HIGHEST PEAKS. THE HIGHER SAN DIEGO COUNTY MOUNTAINS COULD GET AN INCH OR TWO OF SNOW. COLD AIR DAMMING ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE SAN BERNARDINO MOUNTAINS COULD RESULT IN SNOW FLURRIES IN THE HIGH DESERTS AS WELL.

STRONG GUSTY WEST TO NORTHWEST WINDS WILL ACCOMPANY THIS SYSTEM…BECOMING EVEN STRONGER BEHIND THE FRONT WEDNESDAY NIGHT. THE STRONGEST WINDS WILL BE IN THE MOUNTAINS AND HIGH DESERTS WHERE THERE COULD BE WIND GUSTS OVER 60 MPH. THESE WINDS COULD CAUSE BROKEN TREE LIMBS…DOWNED TREES AND DOWNED POWER LINES. NEAR ZERO VISIBILITY WILL BE POSSIBLE AT TIMES DUE TO SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW.

DRY COLD NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT WILL BRING TEMPERATURES ABOUT 10 TO 20 DEGREES BELOW SEASONAL AVERAGES THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. THERE WILL LIKELY BE WIDESPREAD FROST IN THE INLAND VALLEYS THURSDAY AND FRIDAY
NIGHTS.

PEOPLE TRAVELING LATE TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY SHOULD CLOSELY MONITOR THE LATEST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECASTS AND STATEMENTS AND PLAN ACCORDINGLY. THE RAIN WILL CAUSE SLICK ROADS AND MOTORISTS SHOULD USE EXTRA CAUTION. DO NOT DRIVE THROUGH FLOODED AREAS OR
AROUND BARRICADES. IF TRAVELING INTO THE MOUNTAINS…BE PREPARED FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF WINTER STORM CONDITIONS WITH VERY LOW WIND CHILL TEMPERATURES.

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