Memorial Day weekend, 2021. No route planned, no campsite reserved. Just myself in the Blue Yota, Scott Barnes and Lucy the Dog in the green XJ, and Brent Barnes in the red ZJ, all pointed at Big Bear in the San Bernardino Mountains with a loose goal of finding somewhere good to sleep.
On a busy holiday weekend, "somewhere good" means hunting for the best yellow post or flat spot of ground that hasn't already been claimed. We found ours, and in classic Scott fashion, he managed to get himself wet in the process. Some things are just consistent.
Dinner was steak, green beans, and french bread. The night was spent reading old books and watching the sky. There's not much to say about an evening like that because there doesn't need to be.
The next morning was one of those where you unzip the tent and the view does all the talking. We packed up camp and hit the trails with no definite plan. Just a map, a vague list of spots that looked "interesting," and nowhere to be.
We spent several hours driving the back trails on the south side of Big Bear Lake, scouting yellow post camp spots and bookmarking the best ones for next time. Half the value of a trip like this is the recon for the trips that come after it.
We wrapped up the trip by exiting the area on Clark's Grade. It's a super cool, super exposed trail that is well worth the drive if you're in the area. The kind of road where you keep one eye on the view and the other on the edge.