Saturday Big Bear, CA

were chains required to get up the mountain?

 

I'm curious to know as well.

 

I go up there a lot in the snow and usually, as long as you have 4x4 and AT tires they will let you through. If there's a bad storm happening they will ask you to show that you have chains in the truck, but I have never had them tell me to put chains on with 4WD.

 

Good to know. Thank you!

 

And if you're 2WD you will definitely need chains if it's snowing on the mountain, they will turn you around if you don't have them (if you make it that far). One time I remember going up and there were 2wd cars and trucks that started spinning their tires on the highway just trying to go forward a few feet and then they'd start sliding backward. It's pretty steep at parts and you don't want to risk it without chains in 2wd.

 

Kinda wish I had gone out there this past weekend...we opted to go up to Lake Arrowhead instead since it's a bit closer and usually way less crazy/crowded than Big Bear. They had quite a bit of snow but didn't get any snow flurries like Big Bear did...not as many trails up in Arrowhead but still some fun areas to explore. They don't have any ski lifts or resorts so the crowds are way smaller, which is nice. And the lake is a lot bigger and prettier IMO.

Big Bear can take 3 hours just to get up the mountain on the highway on the weekends...best way to get up there is to take the fire roads/4x4 trails from the backside on up. Although that can be pretty sketchy if you do it in a snow storm without much experience.

 

Any fire roads to recommend for going up this weekend? 2N02 it's easy, but if like to avoid going all the way to yucca valley first

 

Coxey Road/3N14 is the one that takes you up into Big Bear, starts in Hesperia on the desert side of the mountain. Although I heard that they closed it last weekend due to the storms, apparently it got washed out pretty bad. I don't know of any other fire roads that go up into there personally, unless you take Green Valley Lake Blvd to 3N16/Holcomb Valley Rd but you have to go halfway up the 330 highway to get to that one

 

Coxey rd was closed huh ???

 

This last weekend roads were in R3 conditions, meaning chains were required no matter what... Kinda gnarly, never seen Big Bear have those conditions ever. Guess the floods/storm really hit Bear hard. I've seen Mammoth with R3 once, three years ago but that was it.

 

Big Bear flooded pretty bad. Knee deep waters, the town told everyone just to stay inside and don't bother driving because it was unsafe. I don't doubt it got washed out at alllll. Good news is the lake is filled back up a massive amount... haha!

 

Lion's Club Gun Range not too far from there

 

It's a mess up here only hwy 18 from Lucerne Valley and Hwy 38 from Highland to Big Bear lake is open right now . Hwy 18 is still closed from Big Bear lake Dam to Green Valley Lake rd

With this new storm that's supposed dump massive amounts of snow tonite the road closures could even get worse

 

It wasn't R3 anywhere I was at this weekend, although If everyone had had chains on it would have cut about 2.5 hours off my trip. We had to come in from the backside on the 18.

we hadn't moved in about 45 minutes and google suggested we take Cactus rd up and around traffic.... at 11:30 after snow and a week of torrential rain.... I made the wrong decision and tried it out.... Ended up having to back up down the trail right about here because a good 7+ feet of the trail was gone. Made it through plenty of washed our trail when we weren't on an incline and through a few areas with recent rockslides, but this area wasn't really passable.

Slid sideways and down into a rock that made it over my sliders into both driver's side doors which was a bummer.

 

The R3 issuing was on Sunday night/Monday on the 38. My boyfriend lives in Big Bear and tried driving home Sunday night from Huntington, but got turned around because he didn't have chains even though he has AWD.

 

I heard that it was so we hit up a different local trail instead, and within 5 minutes I fell into a rut that pushed me into a dirt wall and crushed my drivers side fender, mirror and headlight lol. So I'm in repair mode for the next week or so haha

 

Do you know if Coxey will be open this weekend?

 

I doubt it.. They're expecting 20 inches tonight and more snow in the next two days.

 

Ouch !!!!