Big Bear Lake California For Big Fun

With family that extends from Arizona to Northern California, our family chooses Big Bear Lake in Southern California as a central meeting place.

We wanted a centralized meeting place that offered fun recreation for family entertainment. I worked with my sister and sister in-law to find the perfect meeting place. Big Bear was a short seven hour drive from Arizona. The drive would be eight hours for my brother and sister in law in Northern California. After discussing many options, Big Bear won the journey. Boasting that they are \”Mother Nature\’s Four-Season Resort\” with Oktoberfest, Alpine slide, Mountain Brewery, Lake Tours, The Village, and Fishing were all great attractions.

Everyone arrived at the same time to the cabin rental management office. The drive for everyone was uneventful and simple. We got the keys to the cabin and followed each other to the door step of a rustic one story cabin right across the street from the lake. The Jacuzzi tub was heating up and the house was warm and inviting. We were all tired from our road trip, but so excited to finally be together under the same roof. We unpacked our gear, had a simple dinner together and played cards until we literally passed out.

Thursday morning was foggy and cold. It rained overnight. We all loved it. Unsure of what to do first, we took a drive around the north shore while our other family members explored the Village.

Everyone met up at the Big Bear Mountain Brewery for lunch. According to Big Bear lake lodging and visitors guide \”The brewery with fresh microbrewed beer and great grub\”. Everyone chose to have something with the homemade chili or homemade soup. We recommend the Portal Bock dark beer. I had Orange Blossom, but I don\’t recommend it. The food wasn\’t that great either unfortunately. And the bill came in way over priced. Then we found out that the brewery doesn\’t actually brew the beer at their location. We\’ve decided to avoid this destination in the future.

With full bellies my brother, sister-in-law, Glen and I head out for a Lake Tour. The lake tour departed from the Big Bear Marina, \”The place on the lake\”. This marina is conveniently located within walking distance from the cabin we stayed in. The cruise is called \”Big Bear Queen Lake Tours\”. The skippers name is Chris and he was fabulous. As a native of Big Bear he had all kinds of knowledge regarding history of the lake. Chris took his passengers on a sightseeing tour of the entire lake. The tour lasted approximately an hour and a half. The tour was beautiful, fun and we learned a lot about Big Bear. We highly recommend taking this tour. The best part was when Chris gently pulled the Queen right up to the home of Mel Blanc\’s son, Noel Blanc. Noel noticed the boat and ran out, grabbed a mega phone and in his best Bugs Bunny voice, wished us a great day and fun tour. Then as if Noel knew Chris as family he shouted \”Hey Chris, be sure to tell them about your grandfather!\”. All the passengers on the boat clamped and waved. It was great!

Friday was a day for Glen to pack up his fishing gear and head to the damn for what promised to be some great trout fishing. He purchased a one day license at the Big Bear Marina and with chairs and a cooler full of refreshing drinks went to find the best spot.

In the meantime the rest of us got ourselves ready and headed out to the Moonridge Animal Park. This park has an Alpine collection of more than 160 animals. The entrance fee was inexpensive, around $9.00 per adult and the animals were fun to watch. Several times, zoo keepers were maintaining the habitats as visitors walked by. They were friendly and offered information on the personalities of the animals. This destination is another highly recommended must do if your family journey\’s to Big Bear. However, don\’t expect to see a huge zoo. The collection of animals is diverse and fun but the entire zoo can be seen in about an hour or two if you hang out and watch the animals for a while. We finished the zoo and made plans to meet Glen in the Village for lunch.

A great Mexican food place offering outdoor seating and great service filled our bellies once again. Then back to the cabin for another night of relaxing in the Jacuzzi and playing cards by the lake.

Saturday in Big Bear is the day when everything is now open. We discovered that most of the attractions around the lake during this time of year are only open on the weekends. This is also the first day of Oktoberfest, one of the main reasons for picking Big Bear as a destination. The first stop for today was the Alpine Slide at Magic Mountain, \”Year Round Family Fun\”. As promised the fun was never ending. Purchase a five trip pass for $18.00 or a single trip for $4.00. Ride the gondola over the top of the slide up to the top of the hill. Watch other thrill seekers enjoy their ride down as you hover over the slide in your ski lift chair. Get to the top, grab a sled and off you go. Ride the luge as fast or as slow as you want. Be careful, as we discovered, there is a good reason they made us sign a waiver before riding. Our brother-in-law fell out of the luge twice on his way down. He was okay but scrapped up pretty good and now in some pain from the scrapes on his arms, legs and face. That was his second trip down, he didn\’t go again. But the rest of us continued to ride with no other incidences and had a really good time.

Next stop on this fun filled vacation, Oktoberfest! According to Big Bear Lake lodging and visitors guide, \”Take a break from your responsibilities, lower your inhibitions and surrender to the spirit of the annual Big Bear Lake Oktoberfest.\” Inhibitions are gone when entering the convention center full of costumed servers and entertainers as the polka band plays the chicken dance song. Be sure to sign up for all the activities as this makes the event just that much more enjoyable. My brother and sister-in-law entered the Hansel and Gretel log sawing contest and took first place. My sister and I did the all-girls log sawing contest and didn\’t do as well, but had tons of fun. Brother held a beer stein as long as he could but two others held out longer. The dancing and contests and outdoor booths were tons of entertainment for the whole family. Oktoberfest is highly recommend, be sure to make it as fun as you can. The entrance fee may be a bit pricey but for the entertainment value, it\’s well worth it.

Sunday, the day for the journey back home.The family said their good byes and again departed their separate ways with a joyful heart and anticipation for the next trip to Big Bear Lake California.

Sydney and her husband Glen enjoy being in nature, hiking, canoeing, fishing, and camping.They\’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit that drove them to find a business they could work from home. However they both had good jobs that held them firmly in their comfort zone.The problem was they didn\’t have the freedom they wanted to do what they love and enjoy. Here is more information on the solution they found to give them the freedom they craved.Check us out here http://SystemStepByStep.com

Sydney Dinsmore and her husband Glen have always had an entrepreneurial spirit that drove them to find a business they could work from home.They wanted to take control of their lives,and travel whenever. If you\’re ready to take control check out the solution they found http://SystemStepByStep.com

Author Bio: Sydney and her husband Glen enjoy being in nature, hiking, canoeing, fishing, and camping.They\’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit that drove them to find a business they could work from home. However they both had good jobs that held them firmly in their comfort zone.The problem was they didn\’t have the freedom they wanted to do what they love and enjoy. Here is more information on the solution they found to give them the freedom they craved.Check us out here http://SystemStepByStep.com

Category: Travel
Keywords: online income,entrepreneurial spirit,mlm business,job search,laid off,personal business,dinsmore

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