Cougar Crest Trail December 8 2012

San Bernardino Forest:

Cougar Crest Trail

I'm just going to be honest, I waited way too long to write this blog. It has almost been a month and way too much has happened this break for me to have a good memory of this trail. I'll try my best.

This hike was officially my first hike in the San Bernardino Forest is was suppose to be the kickoff to "Leland's winter of hiking." This was also my first non-solo hike since my trip to Joshua Tree. This time my friends, Steve, Terry, Sarah, and Mike joined me. Much to Terry's dismay, we all crowded in Steve's car and began the 2 hour trip to Big Bear. The drive up is beautiful and the world transforms from the Los Angeles metropolis into a quiet, little, mountain town. There is a major resort up here and it is quite obvious why Big Bear is such an attractive escape for the Angelenos. 

You do not have to pay for parking because you actually park at the ranger station and follow a paved trail for about a quarter mile to the trail head.

The first mile of the trail is much worse than the rest of the trail, though it is overall not that bad. The trail starts off as moderate but after the first mile it is an easy trek through the forest. It was nice to have some good conversation while hiking and I enjoyed the company. The trail was pretty busy the entire time.

As we continued the climb the trees would open up and spectacular views of Big Bear lake would appear. After awhile the trail opens up to an unobstructed view and even park benches were added to take it all in. This is a great place to stop and enjoy nature.

Mike and Terry loved it so much (or were sick of walking) that they decided to stay here while the rest of us continued on. Sara rediscovered her love of trail running which left Steve and I to hike up the trail together. From the benches it is only 5 or 10 more minutes to the intersection of the Pacific Coast trail. 

This is where we made our mistake. From this point you can turn right and head up a mile to Bertha peak. Steve and I thought we had reached our final destination and returned to the rest of the group. I didn't realize until later that we were suppose to continue on. Oh well, we still got to enjoy great views of the lake below and I had a blast enjoying hiking as a group activity. 

i really enjoyed this hike. It is an easy hike once you get into it and offers great views of the lake. I look forward to visiting Big Bear Lake more in the future if I can just find the time to get out there.

As always, here are more pictures